The polygraph results for the parents of two missing children who disappeared three months ago have been revealed.
A series of lie detector tests were conducted on the parents of Jack Sullivan, 4, and his sister Lily, 6, who were last seen in May on a road close to their home in Lansdowne Station, Nova Scotia.
Jack and Lily were reported missing on May 2 by their mother, Malehya Brooks-Murray.
The first round of polygraph tests, which measures fluctuations in a person’s nervous system to indicate if they are being truthful when answering a series of questions, took place on May 12, according to new documents obtained by CTV News.
The results for both Brooks-Murray and the children’s stepfather, Daniel Martell, indicated that the pair had been ‘truthful,’ the documents stated.
An investigator added at the end of both the children’s mother’s and stepfather’s results that, ‘At this point in the investigation Jack and Lilly’s disappearance is not believed to be criminal in nature.’
‘I do not have reasonable grounds to believe a criminal offence has occurred. Because Jack and Lilly are still missing, polygraph examinations were conducted with the intention of ruling out that possibility,’ the comment continued.
Then on June 10, the missing children’s stepmother, Janie MacKenzie, also participated in a polygraph test, but it was noted that her ‘physiology was not suitable for analysis and an opinion on the polygraph examination was not rendered.’
Two days later, the children’s father, Cody Sullivan, was also found to be ‘truthful’ in a polygraph examination.
Police have said, as the hunt for the missing young children continues, that they are still ‘considering all scenarios.’
‘The team continues to evaluate all tips and information, with no scenarios having been ruled out,’ spokesperson Cindy Bayers said in a statement to CTV. ‘Investigators have and will continue to receive forensic results, including those related to the pink blanket, which they’re assessing.’
In July, a piece of a pink blanket, determined to belong to Lily, was found by three family members in a tree less than a mile from their home.
Another piece of the blanket, found to be the same one, was found on May 4 in a trash bag at the end of the family’s driveway.
A sniffer dog was later dispatched but was unable to pick up a scent from area where the blanket had been found.
The documents revealed that earlier in the investigation, Sullivan had been suspected of taking the children to New Brunswick.
However, the children’s father told police he had not seen his children or their mother for around three years. Sullivan added that he had been continuing to pay child support, contradicting what their mother had told police, CTV reported.
‘He said he did not know what happened to Jack and Lilly,’ police said, according to the documents.
‘He was home on May 2, 2025, and never goes anywhere. He has not been anywhere other than his house recently and has had no contact with Malehya since the children went missing.’
In June, the children’s paternal grandmother, Belynda Gray, said in a heartbreaking interview with CBC that she feared she would never see her grandchildren again.
‘My heart tells me these babies are gone,’ she said. ‘I just want them back. These are everybody’s grandchildren. They’re not just mine now. It does seem like the whole world cares.’
Gray explained that Sullivan and the children’s mother, Brooks-Murray, had been in a relationship for about three years before the children’s mother decided to end it, citing ‘relationship problems.’
She claims they were already in little to no contact and was unable to see them for two years after her son and ex daughter-in-law broke up.
Following Brooks-Murray’s estrangement from the children’s biological father, she sought sole custody of the children.
Her decision prompted Cody to withdraw from the situation entirely, Gray said.
‘When she did that, he said that he was done. He just didn’t want any part of it,’ Gray told CBC, adding that Brooks-Murray had also confided in her that she ‘wasn’t happy.’
Despite the strained relationship between the parents, the devoted grandmother maintained a strong bond with Brooks-Murray at first. She said the children would often visit her whenever she asked.
However, that changed when Brooks-Murray moved in with her new boyfriend, Daniel Martell, who shares a young daughter with Brooks-Murray.
Brooks-Murray and Martell believe the kids went out a sliding back door of the family’s home while they fed their baby.
Police are reportedly working on the assumption that the children, who are both autistic, wandered off, but their stepdad said he feared they may have been abducted.
Brooks-Murray explained that she and Martell thought the children were playing, and they snuck away the short time the couple were occupied.
‘We always make sure that we’re out there with them, watching them, and they happen to just get out that sliding door, and we can’t hear it when it opens,’ she said.
‘They were outside playing, but we weren’t aware of it at the time, and the next thing we knew it was quiet.
‘We get up and look outside. We’re looking everywhere, yelling for them, and I instantly just called 911. I just had the instinct I needed to call.’
Brooks-Murray said her children may have mild autism but were friendly, contrary to rumors online claiming they were non-verbal.
‘They’re both really happy-go-lucky children. They’re so sweet. They talk to anyone. They’ll talk your ear off. They will speak to anyone in a store, everyone. They’re just extremely sweet kids,’ she said.
The distraught mother questioned why an Amber Alert wasn’t issued, but police said there was no reason to believe they were abducted.
Martell told CBC News that he was frightened the children were taken by a stranger.