Grace Millane: British woman vanishes during gap year in New Zealand

Family appeal for information on Essex tourist after she fails to return to her Auckland hostel

British backpacker Grace Millane, 21, from Essex, who died in Auckland, New Zealand, in December 2018. (Michael Millane)

A British woman travelling in New Zealand is being sought by authorities after disappearing from a hostel almost a week ago.

Grace Millane, from Wickford in Essex, had been in regular contact with family at home through the messaging app WhatsApp after she flew to Auckland a fortnight ago.

However, concerns about her whereabouts were raised when she failed to respond to greetings from relations sent on her 22nd birthday on Sunday.

One of her brothers, Michael, said the family had discovered she had not returned to the Base Backpacker hostel in central Auckland where she had been staying for several days.

“Grace has been missing for five days,” he wrote on Facebook. “She has not returned to her hostel room in Auckland New Zealand and family members have had no contact since Saturday 1st December.

“The Embassy have been contacted. Please share and contact if you have any information regarding her whereabouts.”

Ms Millane’s other brother, Declan, also appealed to social media users to share information in a bid to locate his sister.

“We haven’t heard from my sister since Saturday is currently travelling in New Zealand and was last seen in Auckland,” he wrote.

A missing person’s report had been filed with police on Wednesday, local media said.

British High Commission Wellington consular manager Tony McLeod said the commission had been made aware of Ms Millane’s disappearance.

“We are working with the family in the UK and New Zealand Police in relation to reports of a missing British national in New Zealand,” he told the New Zealand Herald.

“We are unable to make further comment while police are investigating the matter.”

A spokesman for the Foreign Office said: “We are in contact with New Zealand police and providing consular support after a British woman was reported missing in Auckland.”