Yves Jodouin

Status:

Open

Jurisdiction:

Ottawa Police Service Royal Canadian Mounted (POLICE)

Missing From:

Ottawa, Ontario

Summary:

Yves Jodouin was the third of four children. At 16 years old, he was a budding artist and comic book collector, described by those who knew him as polite and well-liked. At only 4'9", his already small stature was compounded by his struggles with Anorexia Nervosa. He went missing on July 2 1984 after being granted a day pass from CHEO (Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario) where he was seeking treatment. He spent the day with his grandmother and then was dropped off to see a movie. He was supposed to be back by 6:15 pm. At 7:00 pm he called his grandmother to tell her he was running late and would be home soon but he never arrived. No one ever saw or heard from him again.

Vital Statistics

Circumstances of Disappearance:

Yves was granted a day pass from CHEO (Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario) where he was seeking treatment. On the morning of July 2, 1984, his grandmother picked him up from the hospital, and they went to her house on Abbey Road – a quiet dead end street in the neighbourhood across from the hospital. Yves wouldn't be staying long; he was expected to return to the hospital that evening. At some point after arriving at his grandmother's house, Yves said he was going to see a movie. He never specified which movie, and it's unclear if he was dropped off at the venue or if he left on his own from his grandmother's house. Yves promised to return by 6:15 p.m. Instead, it was later learned that Yves went to a friend's house in Kanata that afternoon. His friend wasn't home, so Yves knocked on the door of a next door neighbour. He asked to use the bathroom. At 7 p.m., Yves called his grandmother. At 7:00 pm, Yves called his grandmother to tell her he was delayed in coming back but would be there soon. No one ever saw or heard from him again. As it was 1984, there were no cell phones, so Yves was calling from a landline and his grandmother does not know where he was calling from.

Additional Details:

In April of 1981, when Yves was just 13 years old, his mother, Marielle, passed away. Two years later, in September of 1983, his father Andre Jodouin – a law professor at the University of Ottawa – took a sabbatical and moved the family to Barbados. While in Barbados, Yves' battle with Anorexia worsened. Within months, it had become severe enough for doctors to suggested he return to Canada for treatment. In March of 1984, Yves Jodouin returned to Canada on his own and lived as a patient at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario. He weighed only 84 pounds. After his disappearance, his father said that Yves might have been staying with "marginal people" or may have tried to hitchhike somewhere. His father was desperate to at least know where Yves was when he made the phone call. If Yves Jodouin did run away, he never contacted any of his friends; most runaway youth eventually do. When he disappeared, Yves had only a few dollars in his pocket.

Case Last Updated:

Aug 04, 2026