7 days ago
Four teenage girls came to study in Australia then mysteriously vanished within weeks of each other - and they are STILL missing 18 months later
Four students on exchange trips from Vietnam to an Adelaide college have all mysteriously disappeared just weeks apart and are still missing 18 months later.
The four teenage girls attended Hamilton Secondary College while living with South Australian host families but vanished between December 2023 and January 2024.
Despite their limited English, each girl went missing from her host home at different times, with the last one vanishing on January 8, 2024.
Sunnie Nguyen, aged 17 at the time, disappeared from her room after having dinner with her host family at their South Plympton home, in Adelaide's inner-south.
Host mother May Zervaas revealed she said goodnight to Sunnie, and only checked in on her at lunchtime the following day as she thought the teen was sleeping in.
She discovered Sunnie had mysteriously gone, but left behind her essential medication and some clothing.
Ms Zervaas later found that the Year 11 student's phone had been disconnected and her social media accounts deleted.
Although there was no evidence of forced entry, Ms Zervaas' daughter Maria said she was deeply concerned for the Vietnamese girl's welfare.
The Zervaas family live in South Plympton, around 8km from Adelaide's CBD and 4km from Hamilton Secondary College.
They told South Australia Police that Sunnie had seemed happy living in Adelaide since she arrived in July 2023.
But they said she had still relied on her host family to translate almost everything into Vietnamese as her English was very limited.
'I'm just worried because her English is not that good,' Ms Zervaas said in January 2024, days after the disappearance.
'I hope she is OK.'
Sunnie's hosts said all the teenager's shoes were missing from her room, along with her backpack, laptop and identity and travel documents .
There has been no sighting of Sunnie or the three other missing Vietnamese teens, who all vanished under similar circumstances and have not contacted their worried hosts.
South Australian Police this week confirmed the four teens are still missing 18 months later, but downplayed fears for their safety.
A fifth girl also went missing around the same time but was later located.
It is speculated the missing girls may have travelled interstate, with police refusing to release any details of the three other girls also still missing.
A SAPOL spokesman told the Daily Mail that police are still 'working with other agencies to help locate these youths and ensure their welfare'.
But they insisted there was 'no information or evidence uncovered to date which would indicate these youths are in immediate danger'.
Police also said they had contacted the Vietnamese families of the missing girls, who 'have not shared any concerns for the students' welfare'.
'It is believed the youths are actively avoiding authorities,' the spokesman added.
SA Department for Education said it had been 'made aware of a small number of students who left their homestays without permission'.
The Daily Mail has contacted the South Australian Vietnamese Women's Association, which has previously commented on the disappearances, for updates on the missing girls.
