Elnaz Hajtamiri, 37, was forcibly removed from the home she was staying at with relatives in the town of Wasaga Beach in the Canadian province of Ontario in January.

The Iranian-born victim, who came to Canada four years ago, was reportedly taken by three men wearing fake police uniforms and remains missing to this day.

Mohamad Lilo, who was in a relationship with the victim until last October, was arrested by Ontario cops on July 12.

Local news reports in April said Lilo hired a private investigator to keep tabs on Hajtamiri shortly before she went missing.

According to local media, Lilo, who also uses the last name Tamiri, also faces charges of attempted kidnapping and attempted murder from a previous incident in Richmond Hill, Canada, on December 21, 2021.

He allegedly battered Hajtamiri with a frying pan in a car park before attempting to abduct her with two accomplices. At the time, he was charged with criminal harassment and released on bail.

He is expected to plead not guilty to the charges related to the victim’s disappearance, according to Lilo’s lawyer Philippe Grenier.

Hajtamiri’s family said they are hopeful the latest developments will shed light on the case.

The family said in a statement: “These past six months have been grueling and painful since her disappearance, as we’ve continued to search endlessly for her. We’ve been met with nothing but silence from the abductors, and not a trace has been found from our beautiful girl.”

Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) spokesperson Bill Dickson called Lino’s arrest “a major step” but admitted “this is not over”, adding: “The bottom line is we need to find Elnaz Hajtamiri, we need to find out what has happened to her. We owe that to her family, owe that to her community.

“Where is she, what is her condition. Will that result in more charges, more arrests? We don’t know. We can’t speculate on that, but anything is possible at this point in time.”

The development comes three months after two other men were named in connection with the alleged assault in Richmond Hill in December.

Riyasat Singh, 23, was arrested and a Canada-wide arrest warrant is out for Harshdeep Binner, 23.

This story was provided to Newsweek by Zenger News.