**Missing Woman Found Alive After 63 Years: A Remarkable Discovery**

**Audrey Backeberg, who disappeared at age 20, has been found alive and well after an extensive review of her cold case led investigators to her current location.**

A woman who vanished nearly 63 years ago has been located alive and well, according to law enforcement in Wisconsin. Audrey Backeberg, then 20, went missing from Reedsburg on July 7, 1962. The Sauk County Sheriff, Chip Meister, confirmed that her disappearance was not connected to any criminal activity but was a personal choice. Currently, Backeberg resides outside Wisconsin, although details about her current life remain undisclosed.

Wisconsin Missing Persons Advocacy reports that Backeberg was married and had two children when she went missing. Just days before her disappearance, she had filed a complaint against her husband for abuse, stating he had threatened her life. On the day she left, Backeberg went to collect her paycheck from the wool mill she worked at. The couple's 14-year-old babysitter, who was with her at the time, reported that they initially hitchhiked to Madison before taking a bus to Indianapolis. The babysitter later chose to return home, leaving Backeberg last seen walking away from the bus stop.

The case remained unsolved for years until a recent review of old case files brought the investigation back to the forefront. Detective Isaac Hanson played a pivotal role in reopening the case, utilizing an online ancestry account linked to Backeberg’s sister as a lead. After contacting local law enforcement where she currently lives, Hanson spoke to Backeberg for a lengthy 45-minute conversation. He described her as happy and settled, emphasizing that she had no regrets about her past decisions.

This incredible story of choices and survival after decades serves as a reminder of the complexities surrounding missing persons cases and the journeys individuals undertake in search of personal freedom and safety.