Police in Durham Region have discovered what they believe is a shoe belonging to a missing Whitby man along the shoreline of Lake Ontario.

In a release issued Friday afternoon, police said they were contacted after the shoe was discovered Tuesday by a woman walking in the Heydenshore Pavilion area in Whitby.

Police now believe the shoe belongs to missing high school teacher Jeffrey Boucher.

“This was certainly part of the search area, but I can’t say if they went directly in the area that the shoe was found,” Durham police spokesperson Jodi MacLean told CP24 Friday afternoon. “This is a large area along the shore on Lake Ontario.”

The area where the shoe was discovered is roughly a few kilometres from Boucher’s house, MacLean said. No other items of clothing or signs of Boucher have been found.

Boucher, 52, disappeared on Jan. 13 after apparently leaving his family’s home to go for a run.

A number of previous ground, water and aerial searches, utilizing canine units, ATVs and volunteers turned up no sign of Boucher.

Officers are currently assessing ground and water conditions as they prepare for a larger search operation beginning next week, Maclean said.

An aerial search of the area is also scheduled to begin tonight at around 6 p.m.

All possible outcomes considered, wife says

Speaking with reporters Friday afternoon, Boucher’s wife said that the weeks since her husband’s disappearance have been filled with uncertainty.

“I just feel like I’m in the Twilight Zone,” Kristen Boucher said. “You can’t go this way, you can’t go that way, you can’t make any decision until you know some answers.”

While should couldn’t say for sure if the discovered shoe belonged to her husband, she said that it was similar to the style and colour that he preferred.

She added that she has considered all possibilities for what may have happened to her husband, including the worst-case scenario.

“All of my family said to me, you know, you seriously have to pretty well accept that he’s probably died by now,” she said. “And yeah, we’re logical people, so yes, I’ve accepted that.

“What I wouldn’t be able to accept is if someone came and said he committed suicide or something. That I cannot figure.”

Anyone with the information on the whereabouts of Boucher is asked to contact police at 888-579-1520 or Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477).