Mother charged for daughter's abduction gets court to drop publication ban

Details of a court case involving a Mississauga First Nation woman accused of abducting her five-year-old daughter are now able to be made public after a publication ban was lifted — at the request of the accused — during a bail court hearing held in Sault Ste. Marie Monday.  

Jeanette Niganobe was arrested by Ontario Provincial Police during a traffic stop in Dryden, Ont. Jan. 20 and charged with abduction after she was accused of disappearing from her home in Mississauga First Nation with her daughter six days prior to her arrest. 

Making a virtual court appearance from Algoma Treatment and Remand Centre Monday, Niganobe asked the court to scrap a publication ban barring the media from publishing details of the court case — including evidence, representations made and any reasons given by the justice — over the course of the proceedings. 

Addressing the court Monday, Niganobe said that “people need to know why this happened.” 

“This is a public court,” she said plainly during her brief appearance. “I want it to be public.”    

Niganobe and her daughter were passengers in a silver pickup truck when the pair was located safely. The driver of the pickup, 68-year-old Richard Ingram from Blind River, Ont., was charged with abduction, evading police and having cannabis readily available in the vehicle.   

As previously reported by SooToday, the father of the girl alleged that Niganobe fled with their daughter after losing custody of her in family court Jan. 15 — despite East Algoma OPP initially informing the public the mother and daughter had both gone missing. 

“They’re not missing — my daughter has been abducted, and the mother lost custody. She’s just fleeing,” Fred Robinson told SooToday the day before Niganobe and their daughter were safely located. 

Robinson openly questioned a decision made by East Algoma OPP not to issue an Amber Alert. East Algoma OPP defended the move, informing SooToday that an Amber Alert wasn’t triggered because police didn’t believe the young girl was in danger.  

“Amber Alerts are taken very seriously for good reason and there is very strict criteria that must be met in order to activate this type of alert,” said East Algoma OPP Const. Phil Young in an email to SooToday at the time. “Because police believe the mother is caring for the child still, part of the Amber Alert criteria was not met.”

A total of eight police services were involved in the investigation, including Toronto Police Service. East Algoma OPP told SooToday that Niganobe was “evading police” with her daughter in tow.

Niganobe’s name is well known to people in Sault Ste. Marie: In 2008, she was sentenced to five years in prison for impaired driving causing the death of Sault Ste. Marie Police Service Const. Donald Doucet in a May 2006 collision at the intersection of Black Road and McNabb Street. 

The court heard Monday that the Crown is leaning toward Niganobe’s possible release from custody, provided she has a surety in place or is placed under house arrest.    

Niganobe’s bail hearing has been adjourned until Feb. 1 while the court waits for her to obtain legal counsel and review disclosure. The matter is scheduled to be heard via video remand court in Elliot Lake. Ingram's next bail hearing is also scheduled for Feb. 1. 

None of the allegations have been tested in court and both Niganobe and Ingram are considered innocent unless proven guilty.