Wisconsin woman, Audrey Backeberg missing for 62 years found alive

A woman who vanished 62 years ago from southwest Wisconsin has been found alive and in good health, according to authorities.

Audrey Backeberg was 20 years old when she went missing from Reedsburg, Sauk County, in July 1962. At the time, she was the mother of two children, according to archival newspaper accounts.

Despite numerous leads, the search yielded no results for decades, the Sauk County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.

In early 2025, the department reopened the cold case, assigning it to a detective for a full review, part of a broader effort to reexamine long-unsolved investigations, Sheriff Chip Meister stated.

Using genealogical tools through Ancestry.com, investigators were able to locate Backeberg, WISN-TV reported.

“The Sheriff’s Office is now able to report that Audrey Backeberg is alive and well and currently lives out of state,” the sheriff confirmed. “Further investigation determined that her disappearance was voluntary and not linked to any crime or foul play.”

Authorities have not disclosed her current location, and the sheriff’s office did not respond to further inquiries from USA TODAY.