Lily & Jack Sullivan Missing: 10 Things You NEED To KNOW

Two children vanish from their rural home in Nova Scotia. A desperate search begins, and still, there are no answers.

Today, we’re walking through the 10 most important things you need to know about the disappearance of Lily and Jack Sullivan: what we know happened and the questions that remain. What happened to Lily and Jack?

Lily Sullivan is just 6 years old. She’s known to be sweet, curious, and thoughtful. Her little brother, Jack, is four, energetic, playful, and always close to Lily. They live with their mother, Malayaia Brooks Murray, and her partner, Daniel Martell, in a rural part of Pictou County, Nova Scotia, near Gearlock Road. The town is named Lanstown, which has a population of just 100 people, many of whom are related to one another. By all accounts, the children are best friends—happy, playful, and loved deeply by their family. The mother has said it is possible that the children may have mild autism, but they are currently undiagnosed.

“They’re both really go-lucky kids. They’re so sweet. They talk to anyone. They’ll talk your ear off. They, um, they will speak to anyone in a store. They, everyone. They’re just extremely sweet kids.”

On the morning of May 2nd, 2025, their mother said she woke up from a late morning nap. She was in bed with her partner and their one-year-old daughter. While drifting in and out of sleep, she had reportedly heard them playing inside the home. But when she went to check on them, they were gone. No signs of forced entry, no loud noises—just vanished. 911 was called immediately, and a vulnerable persons alert was issued that same day.

According to Malaya and Daniel, it is believed that both children were wearing boots. Lily was dressed in pink and may have taken a white backpack with a strawberry pattern with her. It is unclear if one or both children were wearing pull-ups at the time.

“What happened was we woke up. I heard them playing in the next room beside us, and I was drifting in and out of sleep. And they’re not the type of kids that we tell them not to go outside on their own. We always make sure that we’re out there with them, watching them. And they happened to just get out that sliding door, and we can’t hear it when it opens. And they were outside playing, but we weren’t aware of it at the time. And the next thing we knew, the room like, it was quiet, and we get up, and I tell him, my partner Daniel, I tell him, ‘Do you hear the kids?’ And he says no. And we get up instantly. We’re looking outside, we’re looking everywhere, yelling for them, and I instantly just call 911. I just had the instinct I needed to call.”

More than 160 trained search and rescue personnel were deployed, including ground teams, RCMP, K9 units, helicopters, and drones. The family home sits in a dense, heavily wooded terrain. Searchers combed over four square kilometers, but they faced steep hills, swamps, and thick underbrush—made worse by lingering damage from Hurricane Fiona. Despite every effort, there was no sign of Lily or Jack.

“The officers and searchers on site are following up on anything that provides direction, specifics, and something that can be used to narrow the search.”

One of the most debated parts of this case is that no Amber Alert has been issued. RCMP said the case didn’t meet the criteria for abduction, but many, including the mother and Sipekne’katik First Nation, have pushed back, hoping an Amber Alert might be issued to raise awareness for the missing children.

Chief Michelle Glasgow asked for national alert criteria to be reviewed, especially when Indigenous children are involved. The children’s mother, Malaya Brooks Murray, and her partner, Daniel Martell, have both spoken publicly. Daniel works at a sawmill but was home with the family that Friday morning due to work being slow. Martell has stated he believes the children may have been taken, not simply wandered off. He’s asked that authorities expand the search to airports and provincial borders. He has also participated in searches and media appeals.

Now, the biological father, Cody Lee Sullivan, has a long criminal history, and reports indicate he has not had any contact with the family for many years. As of now, no one in the family has been named as a suspect, and police say both parents are cooperating. According to reports, the last day the children attended school was April 29th. There was no school the next day, April 30th, and the children were kept out of school on May 1st and 2nd due to Lily having a bad cough. It was that Friday, May 2nd, that the children were reported missing.

Psychologists and counselors are working with the students to help them navigate through the traumatic events of the disappearance. The family lives in a rural, isolated part of Pictou County. Authorities confirmed there were no recent reports of abuse or neglect and that the household was not under investigation at the time of the disappearance. Still, investigators have not ruled out any possibilities and continue to look at both internal and external factors in the case.

Pictures surfaced online of the home itself, and the poor condition of the home has fueled speculation about the possibility of neglect within the family. Aside from the couple’s home, there is a camper located on the property as well. Reportedly, Daniel’s mother and brother live in the camper together. It is unknown at this time if they were home when the children disappeared.

There have been very few physical clues at this point, but here’s what we do know:

A small bootprint, which might match one of the children, was found 10 feet from the backyard.

Later on May 6th, a shirt and water bottle were discovered during the search, but police have confirmed they did not belong to Lily or Jack.

So far, no other evidence—no dropped toys, no clothing, no scent trail—has been reported.

There are several controversies surrounding the case that have raised the suspicions of people following this disappearance. Although she initially allowed herself to be interviewed by the news, the mother is no longer willing to speak to the media. She’s deleted or privatized her social media accounts.

Less than a week after her two children disappeared, Malayaia left their home to stay with her parents, raising the suspicions of many. Why would the mother leave her home just a few days after her children disappeared?

And there also seems to be a divide between Malaya and her partner Daniel. Malaya’s family seems to be suggesting that Daniel may know more than he’s saying. While Daniel has voiced concerns about not being able to communicate with Malaya or see his one-year-old daughter, Daniel has publicly stated that he would like to take a lie detector test in an effort to erase any suspicions.

In interviews, both Malaya and Daniel’s accounts have seemed inconsistent at times, raising questions within the true crime community. Now, none of this proves wrongdoing, but in a high-profile missing person’s case, every action is scrutinized.

On May 7th, 5 days into the search, RCMP scaled back ground operations. They cited harsh terrain and the limited likelihood of survival. The major crime unit remains involved, and tips are still being collected. So far, no suspects have been named, no charges have been filed, and most importantly, Lily and Jack are still missing.

Every hour that passes without answers makes this case harder and harder to solve, but someone somewhere knows something. So if you have any information, please contact Pictou County District RCMP at 902-485-4333 or call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477.

Until they’re found, we won’t stop talking about Lily and Jack, and we won’t stop searching for the truth.

So, what do you think happened to Jack and Lily? Leave your theories in the comments section below.