Unbelievable Breakthrough: How Detectives Found a Woman Missing for 60 Years—Alive and Well

So here’s the kicker: a woman who vanished over 60 years ago — poof! — reappears, alive and kicking, leaving the internet wondering if she unlocked the secret to eternal hide-and-seek. Audrey Backeberg, last seen in 1962 strolling off to catch a Wisconsin bus, left behind a husband and two kids, only to be found decades later, living quietly out of state. Talk about the ultimate disappearing act, right? What on earth was she up to in all that time? Did she take the “going off the grid” concept a bit too literally, or was life just pulling one heck of a fast one on everyone? Thanks to a detective’s dogged work and a head-scratching arrest record lead, Audrey’s story reminds us that sometimes the past isn’t as lost as we think — and cold cases can still thaw with a little patience and some old-fashioned digging. It’s like finding a needle in a haystack… after the haystack moved states a few times. Curious about the full scoop? LEARN MORE

A detective has explained how they were able to locate a US woman who went missing over 60 years ago.

Audrey Backeberg disappeared without a trace in 1962 at the age of just 20, having last been seen walking to a bus stop in Wisconsin. She left her husband Ronald and two children behind.

However, on Friday (2 May), she was miraculously found to be ‘alive and well‘ by authorities, which begs the question of where she has been and what she has done for the last six decades.

Although families will often fear the worst when their loved ones go missing, there have been cases where advanced technology has allowed cold cases to be solved, such as one Mexican woman who was located 26 years after disappearing as a child, thanks to the power of age-progressed images from the FBI.

Audrey Backeberg has been found ‘alive and well’ in a different state (Wisconsin Missing Persons Advocacy Inc)

Others have been found a long long way from home, such as Abdul Aziz Khan, who popped up 1,500 miles away, seven years after going missing, with a Netflix documentary playing its part in his discovery.

So, it makes it even more remarkable therefore that Audrey was found so long after going missing, especially as she initially travelled to Indianapolis, which doesn’t quite border Wisconsin but is still pretty close.

Now, a detective has revealed the process they went through in order to find Audrey so long after her initial disappearance.

The Sheriff’s Office stated: “Through diligent investigative work, which included a thorough re-evaluation of all case files and evidence, combined with re-interviewing witnesses and uncovering new insights, the Sheriff’s Office is now able to report that Audrey Backeberg is alive and well and currently resides out of State.”

Isaac Hanson, who was the detective on the case, also revealed more about how he managed to find Audrey, after finding an arrest record which he suspected could have been her.

He told WMTV: “I ended up locating an arrest record that I suspected was likely Audrey, so I contacted her family. She has a living sister in the area.”

After speaking with Audrey’s sister, the detective was able to put together the puzzle pieces which led him to discover an address, and a woman at the address with the same date of birth as Audrey.

He added:“She had been collecting materials and several other family members had been collecting over the years.

“What helped the case immensely was combing through death records and marriage licenses.

“I had high hopes; there wasn’t a certainty that we would know it was her, 10 minutes later, I was talking to Audrey who had been missing for 62 years, which is kind of crazy.”

Backeberg was living in Sauk County, Wisconsin, at the time of her disappearance (Getty Stock Image)

This certainly implies that she stayed within the US, and while it’s undoubtedly a pretty huge country, it seems remarkable that she wasn’t discovered if she’s resided there for her whole life.

Then-Sheriff Randy Stammen there was allegations of abuse in Audrey and Ronald’s relationship, as a criminal complaint which was filed days before she went missing reportedly involved details of this.

Wisconsin Missing Persons Advocacy said she chose to remain at home despite this, though authorities now claim that she chose to go missing, with no criminal activity or foul play involved.

Following its news release, the Sauk County Sheriff’s Office said: “Despite the significant challenges that many cold cases present, this resolution underscores both the importance of continued work and the dedication of the Sheriff’s Office to providing answers to families and the community.”