Police have intensified their search for a German backpacker who was last seen travelling in a remote region of Western Australia in June.
Caroline Wilga has not been heard from since she made contact with friends and was reported missing to the police.
The 26-year-old was last seen on CCTV footage at a convenience store in Toodyay, nearly 90km northeast of Perth, on June 28.
Police believe she last contacted her friends a day later while travelling near Beacon in the Wheatbelt region, some 320km northeast of Perth.
Homicide squad detectives have since been called in to help find the missing backpacker.
Western Australia Police Commissioner Col Blanch told media on Wednesday police were ‘very concerned’ for Ms Wilga’s welfare.
Commissioner Blanch added her disappearance was not being treated as a murder ‘at this point’.
‘They are investigating, not that it’s a homicide at this point, but we want our very best capabilities to investigate something that is very concerning to us,’ Mr Blanch said.
A search is underway for Caroline Wilga in Western Australia after she disappeared
Homicide squad detectives have since joined the search for Ms Wilga who was last heard from on June 29
It is believed her phone has now been switched off, police said.
Police air wing has also joined the ‘very large search and rescue’ operation, with officers scouring the immense Wheatbelt region for clues to her whereabouts.
Ms Wilga has spent two years backpacking around Australia, staying predominately in hostels, funded by her work at mine sites.
She is described as having a slim build; long, frizzy-curly, dark blonde hair; brown eyes and several tattoos.
Ms Wilga is believed to be travelling in a black and silver, 1995 Mitsubishi Delica van.
The van, with Western Australian licence plate, ‘1HDS330’, also has a distinctive rooftop rent.
Anyone with any information or footage from the Beacon area and surrounding northeast Wheatbelt area between June 29 and July 4 is being urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
‘What we would ask is our community keep their eyes and ears peeled for anything relating to the whereabouts of Caroline ,’ Mr Blanch said.
Police believe the German backpacker was last travelling in a Mitsubishi Delica van with registration number, 1HDS330
Before she was last seen, Ms Wilga would also routinely contact her family.
They last heard from her on June 18.
The family hold concerns for her welfare due to the lack of ‘regular communication’.
Her mother, from Castrop-Rauxel near Dortmund, appealed to the public for help in response to a post shared on social media.
‘I’m her mother and need her [sic] help, as I can’t do much from Germany,’ she wrote.
‘Carolina is still sorely missed.
‘If anyone has any information, please contact the police … please keep your eyes open.’
