Backpacker Missing for Nearly 2 Weeks Could Be ‘Lost’ in Australian Outback After Abandoning Van: Police

Police in Western Australia believe that a backpacker missing for nearly two weeks likely abandoned her van, after it was found broken down in the outback.

On Thursday, July 10, Western Australia Police Force confirmed on Facebook that officers had discovered 26-year-old Carolina Wilga’s abandoned vehicle at around 1:10 p.m. local time in the Karroun Hill area, in the north-east Wheatbelt region of Western Australia (WA).

The Mitsubishi Delica driven by Wilga, who has been backpacking around Australia for the last two years, “is believed to have suffered mechanical issues,” police said in the post. 

“Carolina Wilga was not at the scene. The search to locate her is continuing, with additional resources being deployed to the area,” police added on Thursday.

WA Police Acting Inspector Jessica Securo told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s (ABC) Radio Perth on Friday that officers think she’s “likely” to have “become lost in that area, and has potentially walked away from her vehicle.”

“The terrain — it’s outback country and there’s large rocky outcrops, so although there’s a number of tracks, you can see how it would be easy to become lost or disorientated,” Securo added to the outlet.

“Her vehicle was located at least about 35 kilometres (approximately 22 miles) inland from any main tracks, so it is dense around there,” she continued.

Wilga, from Germany, was last seen with friends on Sunday, June 29. She was spotted arriving at a store in the small town of Beacon, around 200 miles east of Perth, at around 12:10 p.m. local time that day in her van, and departed the area around five minutes later. She hasn’t been seen or heard from since, police confirmed.

Wilga’s abandoned van was discovered around 62 miles north of where she was last seen, the ABC noted.

Amid the ongoing search on Friday, Inspector Securo said that Wilga’s vehicle may have gotten stuck, per the outlet.

“We’ve got a forensic contingent out there this morning, and they’ll be in a position to make a better assessment of the vehicle and its capabilities for that area,” she continued. “The car is obviously self-sufficient … she has got solar panels, she has got water in the vehicle.”

“It’s just the vehicle itself is mechanically unable to be used,” Securo added.

Police have been looking into whether Wilga took anything from her van and said that there’s currently no evidence of foul play, reported the ABC.

“It’s hard to say how much she has taken, we do know that she was planning to travel throughout regional WA and do some exploring through there,” Securo told Radio Perth.

“Part of my team at Major Crime division will go through the vehicle and meticulously cover what was in the vehicle, what we believe is outstanding. And that may help to direct our search in a certain area,” she added.

Wilga’s family, who she regularly speaks to, hasn’t heard from her since June 18, per 9News.

The missing backpacker had also been spotted at approximately 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 28, which is the day before she was last seen, visiting a convenience store in the outback town of Toodyay, before she travelled to the Dowerin area, police previously wrote on Facebook.

“Ms. Wilga is described as being of German origin, of a slim build, with long wavy brown hair and brown eyes. She has several tattoos, including one which depicts symbols on her left arm,” the post read.

Officers believe Wilga’s phone has been switched off, per The West Australian.

Police have urged anybody with any information or drone shots in the area of Beacon or the surrounding north-east Wheatbelt area, shot between June 29 and July 4, to get in touch and upload the footage.

Western Australia Police did not immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE for additional information.