The remains of Martin Carpentier were found at about 7pm in the area of Saint-Apollinaire, Quebec, according to provincial police, not far from where the bodies of Romy and Norah – aged six and 11 – were discovered in a forest on July 11.

“According to initial findings, he took his own life,” the force said in a tweet.

The 44-year-old – who was separated from the girls’ mother – became a wanted man when he disappeared on July 8.

Since then, a major ground-and-air search had combed the wooded region 40km southwest of Quebec City.

Carpentier’s car was found, having apparently rolled several times. When police arrived on the scene shortly after the accident, they found the vehicle empty.

The bodies of the two girls were found a few days later. The autopsy results were not revealed, and their father’s motive remains a mystery.

Quebec provincial minister Francois Legault said he was “overwhelmed” by the “national tragedy”.