Family growing desperate weeks after Surrey teenager's disappearance

Simran Khattra, 19, is shown in this photo provided by the Surrey RCMP who are investigating her disappearance.

Weeks after 19-year-old Simran Khattra disappeared from Surrey, B.C., her family is growing increasingly desperate to locate her.

Simran was last seen boarding a bus near 88 Avenue and 132 Street on the evening of April 27, while wearing a black hoodie and grey sweatpants.

There has been little sign of her since – though her father Varinder Khattra told CTV News someone turned her cellphone in after seeing a missing person poster days later.

"My question is, how can he know this phone is Simran's?" Varinder said. "The phone screen, her picture is not on it."

The worried father said Surrey RCMP subsequently questioned two men, but that the family has received few updates since.

In an email Tuesday, the detachment told CTV News its missing persons unit is "actively engaged" in the investigation into Simran's whereabouts. It did not confirm or deny Varinder's account of the phone being turned in and police questioning two people.

"As the investigation is ongoing and information continues to evolve, the Surrey RCMP is unable to confirm any of the information being shared by the family," police said in their statement.

"Investigations take time and can involve many other components and finding Simran remains a high priority for us here."

"As concrete information is able to be shared we will do so," Mounties added.

Simran’s family is extremely worried about her, as she requires medication every 12 hours to prevent seizures – and they have not been satisfied with the RCMP’s handling of her missing person file.

“I don’t know what they are doing for 20 days,” Varinder said. “She doesn’t have medicine.”

The family reported Simran missing on April 27 – the same evening she was last seen – after friends and relatives realized she was not answering calls or texts.

Varinder told CTV News her phone remained on for another eight hours after RCMP responded to the family’s call, but that officers were unable to locate the device before the battery died.

"If they can't get the phone location even with the phone's GPS system, how can they find my kid?" he said.

According to the father, the man who eventually turned over the phone told RCMP he found it on the Pattullo Bridge.

Varinder does not believe his daughter would have jumped off the bridge – she had been taking online courses, he said, and hoped to pursue a career in law enforcement.

He pleaded with anyone who might have information on her whereabouts to come forward.

People with tips can call the Surrey RCMP detachment at 604-599-0502 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.