A Wisconsin woman who vanished more than six decades ago has been found alive — bringing closure to one of the state’s oldest cold cases.
Audrey Backeberg, now 82, disappeared in 1962 when she was just 20 years old. At the time, she was a married mother of two living in Reedsburg, a small city with a population of around 1,800.
She left home one summer day to pick up her paycheck — and never returned. For years, her family and local authorities searched desperately for answers. Eventually, the Sauk County Sheriff’s Office closed the case after all leads went cold.
But in early 2024, the case was reexamined during a routine cold case review. Detective Isaac Hanson, eager to dig deeper, reopened the investigation and began interviewing those connected to the case while reviewing old records.
In just a few months, Hanson located Audrey — alive, well, and living just outside Wisconsin.
Decades-Long Mystery Finally Solved
Backeberg’s sudden disappearance in the ’60s shook her small community. According to the Wisconsin Missing Persons Advocacy organization, Audrey had been going through a troubled period in her marriage, and a criminal complaint had reportedly been filed just days before she vanished.
Her family always believed she wouldn’t have left her two children without a real reason.
In an early twist to the case, the family’s then-14-year-old babysitter told police she had hitchhiked with Audrey to Madison, the state capital.
From there, the two allegedly caught a bus to Indianapolis, Indiana. The teen later changed her mind and returned home, but said Audrey refused to go back. She was last seen near a bus stop — and then disappeared without a trace.
Her husband was investigated and passed a polygraph test, maintaining his innocence.
Found Through a DNA Clue
Detective Hanson finally cracked the case using a modern tool not available in 1962 — genealogy databases. While searching online, he came across an Ancestry.com account belonging to Audrey’s sister. That discovery led him to census data, death records, and eventually, a current address.
“I called the local sheriff’s department and said, ‘Hey, there’s this lady living at this address. Do you have someone who could pop in?’” Hanson told WISN News.
Just ten minutes later, he got a call — it was Audrey. The two spoke for 45 minutes.
No Regrets, Just a New Life
While Hanson has chosen not to disclose the details of their private conversation, he shared that Audrey seemed at peace with her past.
“She sounded happy. Confident in her decision. No regrets,” he said.
“I think she just moved on from things and did her own thing. She led her life.”
Though many questions remain about what drove her to leave and stay away for over 60 years, Audrey Backeberg’s reappearance provides long-awaited closure for a family and community left with unanswered questions for far too long.
