A fresh police operation is underway to seek clear answers. A new raid is aimed at clarifying what happened to Jane Canal and who disappeared. More than 60 officers from the National Police and Civil Guard are patrolling the area where remains, including a femur belonging to a Madrid-born mother of two who has been missing since February 2003 after a reported dispute with her partner, were found a few months ago.
“They are doing everything possible to clarify my sister’s situation. I finally feel that this is a fight with allies,” explains Ana María Canal.
The operation, expected to last several days, involves agents from the United States, the Ávila Civil Guard, and the UDEV unit of the National Police. Search dogs trained to detect biological remains and drones to sense underground temperature changes are part of the effort. The clear objective is to locate new evidence and additional remains of Juana Canal to determine the cause of death. The search area lies five kilometers from Navalacruz, along the road into town, where hikers had previously discovered human remains.
“My little sister was taken from us. It’s painful to say, but that’s how it feels,” Ana María Canal said last June when speaking with Open Case, an events and investigation portal for Prensa Ibérica. She had just learned that various parts of her sister’s body were found in a mountain area in Ávila. The news brought a brief relief, but the road remains long and heavy for them, as they continue the search and endure the uncertainty of everyday life.
The pain endures, but so does the resolve to unravel the truth. He had promised to locate her, and now he aims to uncover answers. “It’s painful to call Juani by that name, but police and the Avila Civil Guard are sacrificing effort to illuminate my sister’s case. I wish it had come sooner. It feels like a battle against allies, a struggle to uncover the truth.”
fight at home
“There were many arguments with her mother, and she ran away. I searched for her but could not find her.” The note was found by Juana’s eldest son, Sergio. Written by Javier, her partner at the time. The date was February 22, 2003. Sergio has never heard from his 38-year-old mother. She did not reappear in his life.
“Her son found the house in disarray with clear signs of a struggle there,” says the victim’s sister.
What happened that night seems crucial. “He allegedly had a fierce dispute with his partner and was the sole witness to what occurred there,” Ana María recalls. She notes that Juani did not take anything, leaving her purse, ID, debit card, and other belongings, and most importantly, she walked away from her family and children. Who left these things behind and left voluntarily?
A photo of Juana Canal from a family album is shown as part of the Open Case status. The family clarifies that the case remains open and is being reassessed.
The exact address where Juani disappeared was traced in recent weeks. UDEV agents and National Police scientists used new techniques with help from Ciudad Lineal GOR to detect traces and blood even after twenty years. The result, however, was negative.
“Mom is not here”
“My mom isn’t here, and there is a note from Jesus.” When Juani’s son Sergio called his aunt, an alert was set. The family did not receive an immediate response, and the investigation progressed slowly. An endless array of hypotheses opened: murder, gender-based violence, voluntary disappearance. “The house was in turmoil and a witness said something important was missed,” Ana María reflects.
“After my sister’s appearance and the reopening of the investigation, two more facts emerged: Juani called the police before she disappeared that day, and another person filed a complaint for physical assault against my sister two days after she vanished.”
“Why did nothing move then?” he asks with bitterness. “I think my sister was treated as if she chose her fate. It’s heartbreaking and painful to acknowledge that this might not be true, and nothing has been done.”
Photos from Juana Canal’s family album accompany the report, provided by the family for Open Case.
Almost twenty years later, the sentiment is stubbornly present. “I’ll never forget the moment when the person in charge of the investigation told me that a certain aspect of my brother’s life had nothing to do with the case. And then—what happened next?” he asks again.
in Navalacruz
Juana Canal, born in Madrid and linked to the Ciudad Lineal district, had no connection to Navalacruz, a small town in Ávila province, yet her remains were found there. The shock of the discovery and the uncertainty of the location compounded the case. There are strong suspicions about the partner’s ties to Ávila, which keeps the investigation active. Ana María insists that the explanation must be found.
The investigation continues. The National Police, the Civil Guard, and the extensive search operation—alongside the family—are united in the pursuit of answers. No one will rest until the truth about Juana Canal is known.