CALGARY — After the Calgary Police Service (CPS) confirmed finding the remains of Parker, 11, in a culvert and tunnel system near Deerfoot Trail, many public figures are now expressing their condolences to the child's family.Found on Wednesday, Parker was believed to have entered a green space culvert on the west side of Deerfoot Trail and travelled through a pipe into a network of tunnels on the east side of the roadway.Parker was found in a 4-ft-wide concrete pipe by a specialized search team from the Calgary Fire Department (CFD), which was needed because of the green space's conditions being “incredibly harsh terrain and part of a water environment.”According to CPS, they received a tip from a member of the public on Tuesday, who had found an article of Parker's clothing — his shoe — that he had been wearing when he went missing..At a press conference Wednesday, Sgt. Richard Wall, CPS' Deputy Ops Chief and Search Manager, suggested Parker may have been in the tunnels for "quite some time."Wall added they located the remains 400 to 550 ft within the network of pipes, which he described as being a "labyrinth."CPS noted they had previously searched the area during the past two weeks, but no evidence was located at the time that would have suggested a more thorough search was necessary."We believe Parker entered into that pipe with all of the clothing that he was wearing, and then through the course of time, some of that clothing had come out of the pipe into the creek, where it was then located by a member of the public," explained Wall. .Prime Minister Mark Carney expressed his condolences late Wednesday, stating, "My thoughts are with Parker’s family in Calgary tonight, and all those who loved him.""Thank you to the Calgary Police Service for your efforts, and to the many community members who searched for Parker and did everything they could to help."The Leader of the Opposition, Pierre Poilievre, expressed similar sympathies to Parker's family, and suggested a way to honour Parker's memory."Ana and I are so heartbroken for Parker and his family. As a father, I know the loss of a child is every parent’s worst nightmare.""Thank you to those who worked to find Parker in the recent days."."We must find ways to keep all our children safe, especially kids with autism and others who face special challenges and risks. We will work with the autism community to find solutions and save lives. There is no better way to honour Parker’s memory," Poilievre wrote."This is not the outcome anyone hoped for. Like so many others, we hoped Parker would be brought home safely," stated CPS."Our thoughts are with Parker's family, loved ones and all those affected by this devastating loss. We know people across the world have spent the past 13 days sharing Parker's information, searching for him and holding onto hope for his safe return."CPS noted, since there is no evidence to suggest any criminality was involved in Parker's disappearance, the investigation remains ongoing to answer the remaining questions for the family..Since no criminality has been detected, CPS usually removes identifying information, including names and photographs, from public platforms once a missing person is located, without sharing details on the circumstances or location with the public.But with the permission of Parker's family, this additional information was released because of the extensive public effort to find him.On Monday, CPS announced it would be scaling back its extensive ground search for Parker after nearly two weeks of intense efforts including covering 8,600 kilometres covered, logging more than 5,500 search hours, receiving more than 600 tips, and involving hundreds of CPS members and volunteers.Instead, they announced they would be refocusing their efforts on pursuing investigative leads..Due to the scale and duration of the investigation, the search had become one of Calgary's largest missing child searches in the city's recent history.
