Emma Alexandra Fillipoff was 26 when she moved from Ontario to Victoria, British Columbia, in autumn 2011. Described as creative and independent, she loved photography, writing and art. By fall 2012 her behaviour had become erratic; she was fearful, withdrawn and sometimes said she felt followed. She had been staying intermittently at the Sandy Merriman House, a women’s shelter.

The last confirmed sighting was the evening of November 28, 2012. That morning she bought a prepaid card on surveillance at a 7-Eleven. She spoke with Chateau Victoria staff about a notice on her parked red Mazda MPV van, and later returned to the shelter distressed when told her mother was en route. Around 7:15 p.m. police spoke with her at the Empress Hotel for about 45 minutes and, after deciding she was not a threat to herself or others, allowed her to walk away. Her van was left in the Chateau Victoria lot with almost all personal items inside, including passport, laptop, camera, clothes and library books.

A lengthy investigation has followed, with volunteers and family pursuing hundreds of leads. A 2014 incident in Vancouver involved an unidentified man tearing down a poster and claiming she had run away; he was never identified. Does anyone who lived in Victoria in late 2012 recall seeing Emma that night or any unusual activity around the Chateau Victoria or Empress Hotel?