How an Ontario teen ended up dead in northern Saskatchewan

A new investigation by CBC's The Fifth Estate is shedding light on a young boy who vanished from his home in Ontario and was found dead in northern Saskatchewan. 16-year-old Josiah Webb Long went missing from Brampton, Ontario in April of 2025. His remains were found near Pelican Narrows in May of this year. RCMP say they are treating his death as a homicide. And we are now learning more about his case. CBC's Aaliyah Marco-Omenne has been working on this investigation. She joins us now from Toronto. Aaliyah, what have we learned about what happened to Josiah? Well, Ethan, the Fifth Estate has investigated the cases of missing black boys recruited by gangs in Ontario cities and sent to sell drugs farther north into First Nations. But we've now learned this operation is taking boys as young as 12, as far west to British Columbia, as far north as Yellowknife, and as far east as Halifax. And we know Josiah Weblong from Brampton, Ontario, was one of them. We spoke to his mother, Shanice Long, and she says she received pictures of her son after his disappearance. And she now believes somebody sent her son far away to make money. So, Aaliyah, you mentioned other boys have been lured by gangs to remote and dangerous places. What have they experienced? Well, Ethan, we spoke to one young boy about this. Kai is 14. He's biracial and lives in Winnipeg. Kai is not his real name. We've changed it to protect his identity. He says he's been sent out of town to sell drugs more times than he can count. He says he was first approached when he was just 12 years old and sent to places where drugs are sold at exponentially higher prices, 10 times the price in some cases. Kai shows us just how much money that can be. They could walk up on you like this. All it takes is this and your influence. So, Aaliyah, who are these gangs and who's responsible for all this? We also spoke to Winnipeg Police Inspector Josh Iwatsky. He says the strings are being pulled by associates of international cartels where boys are being used by those running these operations to sell drugs from methamphetamine to cocaine that come from as far as Mexico. These kids are used so that they don't have to expose themselves to being arrested or being shot. Denny Heathen is a former gang member. He now counsels youth. He then knows exactly how recruitment works. It worked on him. He told us gang members would target boys 15 to 18 with a look of desperation. These are puppets. You just got to make them feel like they're appreciated, like they're going to be taken care of. Now, Ethan, for Kai's mom, who we are calling Aria, it's a cycle she is desperately trying to break. But the gangs keep coming after her son. Kai had spent this summer away at camp and returned home determined to leave the gangs. But he left home again the night before he was supposed to start grade 10. Arya fears the gangs will never loosen their grip on Kai. I don't think that this monster ever goes away. This monster exists and it's going to exist on his path as a young man, as an adult. Okay, an interesting story. Aaliyah, thank you so much. CBC's Aaliyah Marco-Omenne in Toronto.