SIRT-NL has determined that a criminal offence was not committed by RCMP officers who entered the wrong home in Mount Moriah in their search for a missing girl.

The incident in question occurred in June of last year. Officers searching for a missing 17-year-old in reported distress, entered the wrong home at night and entered the bedroom of an 11-year-old child, questioning her on the whereabouts of the missing girl.

A youth-care worker at a Corner Brook area group home alerted police that she was unable to reach a 17-year-old girl who was the subject of a curfew and was required to make intermittent check-ins which she had missed. The worker believed the teenager was in Mount Moriah, which is in RCMP jurisdiction.

The worker described the house and its location to police. In the early morning hours of June 4th, a family in Mount Moriah woke up to find police officers in their home asking about the whereabouts of the missing girl.

SIRT-NL was tasked to determine whether officers broke the law in entering the home without a warrant. In a report released today, SIRT-NL Director Mike King says the reasons for the officers entering the home were clear, they were trying to determine the whereabouts of a missing teen who may have been in distress. He says there is no evidence to suggest the officers acted on any other purpose, and had put thought into their decision, and even contacted the on-call risk manager to seek guidance.

King says it is unfortunate that the information provided to the officers was not accurate, leading them to the wrong house. He says he has not formed reasonable grounds to believe either of the subject officers committed an offence, and a charge will not be laid.