Woman who went missing 60 years ago found safe and well

By Astha Saxena, Features Reporter

Woman who went missing 60 years ago found safe and well (Image: Wisconsin Missing Persons Advocacy Inc)

A woman who went missing 60 years ago has been found alive. Audrey Backeberg was 20 when she left her home in Reedsburg, Wisconsin. The mum of two who disappeared in 1962 was missing for six decades.

According to Sauk County Sheriff Chip Meister, the latest interviews with family and witnesses confirmed to detectives that Audrey was alive. She is reportedly living in another state outside Wisconsin and has "no regrets". Officers working through the case again tried to speak with the woman, who is now either 82 or 83, reports WiscNews.

Audrey was married and had two children when she was last seen near a bus stop on July 7. Her family got worried after she did not return home and reported her missing on July 20.

A 14-year-old babysitter for the Backeberg family claimed she hitchhiked with Audrey to Madison, the state capital, before boarding a bus to Indianapolis, Indiana.

While the teenager was determined to return home, Audrey refused to go back. Reports of abuse and marital troubles surfaced, including a criminal complaint filed shortly before Audrey disappeared, according to the Wisconsin Missing Persons Advocacy group.

Audrey’s husband passed a polygraph test and consistently maintained his innocence, while family members insisted she would never abandon her children. Although Audrey was eventually found alive, many aspects of her case remain a mystery.

Investigators have since confirmed she left voluntarily, though her reasons remain unclear. Her loved ones grappled with the belief that she might have died, with her sister telling the Baraboo News Republic in 2002 that she simply wanted to locate Audrey’s body and see justice served.

Detective Isaac Hanson, who interviewed Audrey, suggested marital issues may have contributed to her decision to leave, though he pledged to keep their 45-minute conversation confidential.

Ultimately, a discovery through Audrey’s sister’s Ancestry.com account helped resolve the case by pinpointing her whereabouts.

The detective told local news WISN: “I think she just was removed and, you know, moved on from things and kind of did her own thing and led her life. She sounded happy. Confident in her decision. No regrets.”