Emma Fillipoff grew up in Perth, Ontario. But, come the fall of 2011, the 26-year-old decided to leave her family behind and move to Victoria, British Columbia.
While starting fresh, Emma landed a seasonal restaurant job at a joint known as Red Fish Blue Fish. Although by October 31, 2012, she ultimately left the restaurant and assured her coworkers she would return the following season.
In November, Emma’s friends and family members believed she would drive her van back to her hometown for a visit. Unfortunately, though, she never arrived in Perth and has remained missing ever since.
There have been few clues or leads in the 26-year-old’s case. But, Emma reportedly acted bizarrely in the time leading up to her disappearance– causing many theories regarding what may have happened to her to circulate throughout the community.
Emma Fillipoff Planned To Travel
While living in Victoria, Emma spoke with friends about all of the places she would like to visit while traveling the world. She discussed going to Japan with her father and visiting Mexico via boat. The 26-year-old also expressed interest in navigating the woods alone, visiting San Juan with a new man, and returning back to Perth to see her family.
The latest travel plans Emma mentioned before vanishing included going to Tofino, British Columbia, or Salt Spring Island.
In the summer of 2012, before her move to Victoria, Emma also bought a 1993 red Mazda VP van. At the time, staff members at a storage facility remembered watching Emma packing the van with her belongings and discussing plans to live in the van while traveling.
The Mazda was not in great shape, though, and the 26-year-old was on a quest to find a cheap mechanic. So, on November 21, 2012, Emma got the van towed to Victoria from Sooke, British Columbia. During that trip, she reportedly told the tow truck driver that she was excited to visit her hometown Perth.
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After Emma disappeared just seven days later, though, her Mazda van was left behind. Inside, the 26-year-old’s belongings and passport were all left behind.
Mental Health Concerns
According to friends and family, Emma was creative, cryptic, and private. She was not known to open up easily or talk about herself often– making it difficult to understand what she might have been thinking prior to her disappearance.
In the winter of 2011, though, one of Emma’s friends and roommates started to grow concerned. The 26-year-old reportedly spent hours using various objects to obsessively make patterns.
Staff members at a shelter Emma sometimes stayed at also revealed how she had acted erratically. The shelter workers believed that she had exhibited symptoms of depression and paranoia.
Strange Behavior Leading Up To Emma’s Disappearance
Just over one week before Emma’s disappearance, on November 20, 2012, the 26-year-old was captured on surveillance footage while at the downtown Victoria YMCA. In the footage, she can be seen walking in and out of YMCA four times in under 15 minutes.
During that time, Emma also went back to the doors to peer outside before reentering the building. And because of what she was holding– either an iPod or just fidgeting with her hands– authorities thought that Emma might have believed she was being followed.
Then, five days before Emma vanished, she phoned her mother, Shelley, and reportedly begged for help getting back to Perth. At that time, Shelley reassured her daughter and claimed that she would definitely pick up or help Emma in getting home.
The very next day, though, Emma called her mother back and insisted that her plans to travel home were canceled.
This same pattern occurred four days in a row. And according to Shelley, her daughter kept saying that she “did not know how she could face her.”
So, on the day that Emma disappeared, Shelley secretly flew to Victoria to see her daughter. Upon arrival, though, the 26-year-old never arrived back at the women’s shelter she had been staying. This pushed Shelley to report her daughter missing.
A Facebook page entitled Help Find Emma Fillipoff was created to raise awareness about the 26-year-old’s case. And on the page, which has gained over 17,000 followers, there is a detailed timeline of the day Emma disappeared.
That day, she reportedly spoke with staff members from Chateau Victoria at 7:00 a.m. before visiting 7-11 to purchase a prepaid credit card. Then, she went to the library at 12:00 p.m.
About an hour later, though, one witness recalled how Emma claimed she had not been feeling good. Yet, that afternoon, the 26-year-old was reportedly seen walking with an unknown older man.
Finally, Emma returned to 7-11 to buy a prepaid cell phone before going to a co-ed shelter. Then, she was seen by a friend named Denis, a cab driver, and police officers.
The Day Of Emma’s Disappearance
Before Emma vanished on November 28, 2012, she went to 7-11 and bought a $200 prepaid credit card at 8:23 a.m. Approximately twelve hours later, though, she disappeared after 8:00 p.m. that evening.
Then, on December 5, 2012, a man used that prepaid credit card at a gas station– which was located about 12 kilometers away from Victoria. The man claimed to have found the card near the gas station. Later, he eventually admitted to being an alcoholic and revealed how he did not remember where he discovered the lost card.
Investigators subsequently questioned the man, but he was not found to be a person of interest.
Along with the prepaid credit card purchase, Emma also returned to 7-11 to buy a prepaid cell phone at 5:54 p.m. on the day she vanished. To make this purchase, the 26-year-old used her bank card.
Then, she was seen on surveillance footage standing by the store’s doors– as if she was looking for someone or trying to avoid someone. Eventually, though, Emma did leave and was seen next at a women’s shelter. But, her prepaid cell phone was not activated and has never been found.
By 6:10 p.m., the 26-year-old also flagged a cab and requested that the driver bring her to the airport. Once she found out the trip would cost $60, though, she reportedly refused to pay the fare.
So, despite Emma having almost $3,000 in her bank account, she told the cab driver that he must bring her back to the women’s shelter where she had been picked up. Later, after being interviewed, the driver told police officers that Emma had seemed upset and paranoid.
Just a few minutes later, the 26-year-old was seen walking barefoot by the Empress Hotel in Victoria by a friend, Dennis. Upon recognizing Emma, Dennis approached her and asked if someone was following her– since she appeared paranoid and confused.
The 26-year-old did not respond to Dennis, though. Instead, she just asked that he walk with her. And after a while, Emma reportedly became tired of Dennis’ questions and decided to walk alone.
At that point, Dennis phoned the police– with officers arriving at 7:00 p.m. Afterward, Dennis left and believed the authorities would help Emma.
It was not easy for police officers to get information out of Emma, though. The authorities spoke with her for approximately 45 minutes, and during that time, she only responded with one-word answers or nods. The 26-year-old also took a lot of prompting before providing her name and continued refusing to put her shoes on.
Still, after the interaction, the police officers determined that Emma was not a danger to herself or others. So, they left her on the sidewalk, and that was the final time the 26-year-old was seen.
The Search For Emma
Following Emma’s disappearance, search teams comprised of Emma’s family members, friends, and volunteers combed Victoria and other Vancouver Island communities. Eventually, the search efforts also widened to include locations throughout Canada and the United States in accordance with reports of possible sightings.
Unfortunately, though, all sightings of Emma have remained unconfirmed.
In 2014, two years after the 26-year-old’s disappearance, one man did claim to have ties to Emma. He reportedly walked into a shop in Gastown, Vancouver, and grabbed a missing person poster– which offered a $25,000 reward for any information regarding Emma’s case.
Then, the man reportedly crumpled up the poster and screamed, “It’s one of those missing person posters, except she’s not missing, she’s my girlfriend, and she ran away ’cause she hates her parents.”
This outburst resulted in the police being contacted. But, despite surveillance footage capturing the man’s statement on camera, he has remained unidentified.
So, for over ten years, Emma has tragically remained missing. Her friends and family members have continued searching, sharing her case on Facebook, and updating the website HelpFindEmmaFillipoff.com.
At the time of her disappearance, Emma was five foot five, weighed between 90 and 110 pounds, and had light brown hair and brown eyes. If you have any information regarding her case, you are urged to contact Crime Stoppers at 1(800) 222-8477 or the Victoria Police Department at (250) 995-7654.
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