Private searchers have celebrated their breakthrough discovery in the case of missing Belgian tourist Celine Cremer, locating her mobile phone in Tasmania’s rugged wilderness.
The discovery, which police confirmed to belong to Cremer who disappeared in June 2023, was made by Tony Hage today during the team’s first day of searching the Philosopher Falls area at Waratah.
Hage, a local SES search and rescue member, described being overwhelmed with emotion upon making the discovery.
“I couldn’t talk. I just could not talk,” Hage told the ABC.
“I just melted. What else would be out here? It’s highly unlikely finding another phone here.”
The phone was found less than 100 metres from Cremer’s last known GPS location, validating the search team’s theory about her movements.
“Everyone has high spirits now. There was a lot of information going backwards and forward from Belgium for the good news,” Hage said.
Tasmanian explorer Rob Parsons, who helped organise the private search, called it “the biggest breakthrough in Celine’s disappearance since her phone data was recovered from servers”.
“This proves the theory that Celine lost her phone shortly after recording her final location and provides clear direction on the path she was heading,” Parsons said.
Cremer was last seen in the small town of Waratah on Saturday June 17 2023 and was reported missing nine days later.
Tasmania Police are now at the scene of the discovery.
“The phone will now undergo forensic examination as part of the ongoing investigation into Celine’s disappearance,” a Tasmania Police spokesperson said.
The breakthrough follows multiple searches by Hage, who has made over 20 trips into the field, many of them solo.
While the discovery is a significant step forward, searchers say there is more work to be done.
