They find the phone of a Belgian woman who disappeared two years ago in Australia

Australian State Police Tasmania will join a privately organized search to locate a Belgian woman who disappeared in a wilderness area more than two years ago, after her mobile phone on that island in the south of the country.

Friends and family of Celine Cremer This weekend they organized a private search in bush areas near Philosopher Fallswhere she disappeared in June 2023. Her car was found near the scene by the Police a few days later, but multiple search operations failed to find any trace of her.

On Saturday, in an area that had already been searched by authorities, the search party found a mobile phone that was confirmed to belong to Cremer and will now be subjected to new forensic testsTasmania Police said in a statement, adding that it was formally joining the independent search effort.

“The data from the phone, as well as the location where it was found, supports our theory that Celine may have decided, using an app on her phone, leave the Philosopher Falls trail to take a more direct route back to his car as daylight began to fall,” said Inspector Andrew Hanson. “We suspect that he dropped his phone and continued without itbecoming disoriented in dense terrain,” he added.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) said four of Cremer’s friends traveled from Belgium to join the new search, which began on Saturday and was expected to last five days. Cremer was last seen on June 17, 2023 and his friends reported him missing nine days later. Police said the winter weather conditions in the days after she disappeared would not have been compatible with survival during the time she is believed to have been exposed.