COBALT - OPP said late Friday that a 16-year-old girl who sustained life-threatening injuries after being attacked in Cobalt remains in stable condition in Ottawa's CHEO Children's Hospital.
The family has identified the victim on social media as Kaylie Smith of Cobalt and reported Friday that she is "awake" in hospital.
Last Sunday, November 3, at 6 p.m., Temiskaming OPP were called to the scene of the attack, where a vehicle had struck the girl at the intersection of Helen Street and Prospect Avenue, near Highway 11B after getting off a bus and walking home following a shift at work.
"The investigation revealed that an 18-year-old male driving a sport utility vehicle struck a 16-year-old female walking along Helen Street. The male then exited the vehicle and attacked the victim with a sword," says an OPP release.
The girl suffered life-threatening injuries and was rushed to a local hospital before being airlifted by Ornge to Ottawa.
"The quick response from local residents and witnesses to the incident stopped further attacks on the victim," say police.
The family of the victim said her left hand was severed completely from her body and her right hand was very severely cut up. She also needed lengthy brain surgery after suffering wounds to the back of her head by and edged weapon that police have identified as a sword.
Investigators believe this is an isolated incident and there were no concerns for public safety.
An 18-year-old male, Phillip Rivard Gagnon from Haileybury is charged in connection to the attack with:
- Attempt to commit murder
- Aggravated assault
- Possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose
- Breach of conditional sentence order
Gagnon remains in custody and is scheduled to appear before the Ontario Court of Justice in Haileybury on Tuesday, Nov. 12. Village Media will be in Haileybury to cover the event, including a protest rally by local residents aimed at keeping Gagnon in jail without bail.
"We ask that the community email or call the Haileybury crown attorney's office to plead that this isn't another catch and release. Phillip needs to stay behind bars to protect our other innocent youth!"
The family spokesman says the victim is a former girlfriend of the suspect. Police are treating the investigation as an intimate partner violence case.
The Temiskaming OPP Crime Unit is continuing the investigation under the direction of the OPP Criminal Investigation Branch.
Family member Paige Smith, Kaylie's cousin, has started a Gofundme page for the victim and over $80,000 has already been raised toward the $90,000 goal.
"First off we’d like to thank first responders, doctors, nurses, the witnesses and everyone involved in getting Kaylie the care she needed so quickly as it definitely made a huge impact on her survival. We would also like to thank the community, the donors, the networks, and the vast amount of people reaching out to help and support Kaylie and the family in the wake of such a heinous and horrific attack.
"We would like to let people know that Kaylie is still stable, the doctors, nurses, staff, and family are in complete awe of her strength, resilience, and determination. She remains in ICU and at the time we request no visitors as it's not allowed while she is in such a vulnerable state. As for recovery, nobody knows how that's going to go, it's much too early, this is a journey that will take months if not a lifetime for Kaylie to heal and overcome."
The family is asking for privacy.
