Carolina Wilga: Search for missing German backpacker now Australia-wide amid ‘unexplained' disappearance

7NEWS

10-07-2025

The search for a missing German backpacker in remote WA has gone national, with police investigating the 'unexplained' disappearance considering intel from across the country.
On Thursday, WA Police released CCTV vision of Carolina Wilga visiting the general store in Beacon, a remote Wheatbelt town more than 300km northeast of the Perth, at about 12.10pm on June 29.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: CCTV of last-known sightings of missing backpacker.
'Carolina departed that area about five minutes later and has not been seen or heard from since,' Detective Senior Sergeant Katharine Venn.
Wilga, 26, had travelled through Toodyay a day earlier — with police also releasing vision of her stopping at a convenience store on Stirling Tce, near Goomalling-Toodyay Rd, at about 4.30pm — and Dowerin.
She was driving a distinctive black and silver 1995 Mitsubishi Delica van, with the WA registration 1HDS 330.
'We hope this (new vision) will cause a member of the public to recognise Carolina as somebody they've seen or jog their memory and provide us with something that may be relevant in our search for her,' Venn said.
Friends and associates have told police she was open to travel throughout regional and remote WA, and may have planned to travel interstate to the east coast.
'Our search area is therefore vast,' Venn said, adding 'all jurisdictions are aware' of her disappearance.
'There are alerts on her vehicle and we are considering information from any state or territory in terms of a sighting or information related to her whereabouts.'
Given the 11 days since her last contact, police said she may have made it 'a long way' from Beacon by now.
'There's lots of variables in terms of the terrain, how unwieldy it can be and how dangerous it can be in parts of WA, availability of fuel. There are so many different variables and that's why this is such a broad investigation,' Venn said.
Aerial assets including helicopters and planes have taken to the sky over the immediate search area in Beacon.
'That certainly forms a significant part of our search effort,' Venn said.
'But we are also following up with leads across regional WA and across towns including Albany, Esperance, Margaret River.
'Every piece of info we're receiving is being treated seriously and followed up on.'
Police said Wilga's van also made it possible for her to live off grid for some time.
'This is unexplained behaviour ... and we are taking it very seriously,' Venn said.
'But it is also possible that Carolina could be travelling in remote WA.
'She could be off grid, not have access to her phone and she certainly had capacity in the vehicle she was travelling in to be self sufficient for quite some time.'
Police are in constant regular contact with Wilga's family in Germany.
Her relatives are 'understandably distraught, very worried'.
Wilga has been backpacking around Australia for the past two years, working most recently at regional mine sites in WA.
She had also been staying at backpackers and hostels during her time in Perth.
Police said the search is being treated as a missing persons investigation.
'There is no indication that there's any third party involvement in her disappearance but our minds are open to any line of inquiry or any information that people bring forward to us,' Venn said.
The detective senior sergeant said it was 'not uncommon' for the homicide squad to join cases like this.
'We basically have the resources and the capacity to provide an entire dedicated investigative team to this one investigation,' she said.
Wilga has brown eyes, a slim build and several tattoos 'including one which depicts symbols on her left arm'.
'Someone out there must have some vital information which can assist WA Police in bringing Carolina back to her family and friends,' Venn said.
'We encourage anyone with any information to come forward and contact police.'
Anyone with information about her whereabouts should contact Crime Stoppers.