Almost five months after his disappearance, the family of Ariel Kouakou said they are still hopeful the 10-year-old boy is still alive.

While police have said they believe the boy may have fallen into the Riviere-des-Prairies in a tragic accident, the family has insisted he wouldn’t have gone near the water and believes he was kidnapped.

Ariel was last seen on March 12, walking in Bateliers Park. Security cameras filmed the boy entering the park, but no sign of him leaving ever emerged.

On Tuesday, the family released an open letter addressed to the kidnapper they believe is out there, saying they are ready to offer forgiveness and have no room in their hearts for hate.  

Ariel's father Kouadio Frederic Kouakou said the letter came about after discussions with his wife.

"We do believe that Ariel is still alive. For many reasons, somebody can be with Ariel," he said. "Some people can feel like they're alone. They don't have kids and they want to fill this empty place by having a kid."

“Love is the most important thing we have to share,” he added. “If that person needs love, we are ready to give that person love. We want to share everything, even our lives, to tell them that. We can be there for them, we can share our life with them, we can give them love.”

Kouakou repeated his insistence that his son didn't fall into the river, pointing to the length of time that's passed with no evidence of a body coming to light.

"In March, we were in winter and now we are in summer. The river is hot now, no more ice," he said. "Even in icy situations, it's not easy for a kid to sink. But if we want to deal with that hypothesis, today, more than four months later, the police should show evidence (but there's no) evidence. For us, this hypothesis cannot be valuable."

Over those months, Kouakou said his wife's courage has kept the family going as they waited in vain for news about their son.

"In the beginning, she was totally down, but with prayers, with the presence of our friends, she feels better now," he said. "Our daughter, she's just a baby, she doesn't have the same feeling as us but sometimes she'll ask to know where her brother is. But she always says prayers to God to protect Ariel and she's hopeful Ariel will be back soon."

The family also submitted an electronic petition to the National Assembly on June 14, calling for a special police task force to investigate potential child abductions. Kouakou said the family plans to start a paper version of the petition soon.