Man charged with kidnapping in Markham missing person's case

A 26-year-old man has been arrested and charged in connection with the disappearance of a woman who went missing last week in the Greater Toronto Area.

Ying Zhang, 57, was last seen on Thursday, July 25, at approximately 10:40 a.m. at a wellness centre in the area of Woodbine Avenue and Steelcase Road in Markham, York Regional Police said in a news release Monday. Her family reported her disappearance that evening after she failed to return home from work, police said.

Police believe Zhang went missing under suspicious circumstances.

On Saturday, investigators with York police's homicide and missing persons unit arrested a 26-year-old man from East Gwillimbury, laying three charges against him. The man has been charged with kidnapping, forcible confinement and aggravated assault, police said.

The accused's white Ford van was seen in the area at the time of Zhang's disappearance, according to the release. Additionally, the accused was seen near the van with a large green compost bin.

Police say they've received information that the man travelled to Kirkfield, a village in the City of Kawartha Lakes, east of Lake Simcoe, the same day Zhang disappeared.

York police Const. James Dickson said Monday that police don't know whether the accused and Zhang knew each other, but they do believe she was targeted in the incident.

Dickson said investigators are still trying to determine whether anyone else was involved in the alleged kidnapping, but they don't believe there is currently any threat to public safety.

Police are asking the public for help locating Zhang. They are looking to speak with additional witnesses who were in the area when she was last seen and are asking the public to come forward with any information they might have about Zhang, or her disappearance. 

Zhang is described as a five-foot, seven-inch woman of Chinese descent with a medium build. She has straight, black and grey hair that's shoulder-length, and was last seen wearing blue scrubs and a jade bracelet on her left hand.