RCMP confirm they are analyzing a mystery substance that was received in the mail by a Comox family on Monday.
Tina Van Akker says her 13-year-old daughter was excited to receive an envelope addressed to her but it came from a Quebec address nobody in the family was familiar with.
"Inside the baggie was a white substance and there was also another clear baggie that had almost like a charm in it," said Van Akker.
The family was uneasy about what they had received and called the Courtenay RCMP's non-emergency line. They then did some searching online about the person whom appeared to have sent the envelope.
Van Akker said the name traced back to a woman who had died five years ago, which further raised their concerns.
The Comox mother tells CTV News an officer had initially agreed to come and look at the envelope but then instructed her over the telephone to toss it into the garbage.
"That was not the response I was looking for at all," said Van Akker.
The next morning, Van Akker had second thoughts about the disposal and took the envelope into the Courtenay RCMP detachment, where they agreed to analyze the contents.
"We are looking into exactly what the substance is so we can determine whether or not there is any sort of threat or any sort of danger," said Const. Monika Terragni of the Comox Valley RCMP.
In the meantime, while the substance is being analyzed, Van Akker said that she is most concerned about why someone would send such a package to her daughter.
"The most concerning part of this all is whether it was a joke or if this is actually something serious," said Van Akker. "It was directly addressed to my 13-year-old daughter."
She said her daughter isn't on Facebook and normally isn't online, so the family is unclear as to how their daughter's address could have been obtained.
"Whoever it was took the time to find an address of a deceased person and then put it on the envelope," said Van Akker.
Terragni said the RCMP's investigation will include looking into what was written on the envelope as well as where the package came from.
Although she would not comment on if there was any confusion over contact with the initial officer, Terragni said the police "will be more than happy to investigate the circumstances of any suspicious package that's received."
Van Akker says she has since heard from officers that the substance did test negative for amphetamines but due to limitations at the detachment, the sample would be sent to Vancouver. The results of that testing are not expected for six to eight weeks.
