Denmark - Camilla Steinaa, 25, North Zealand, 1 January 1987

[Malene]

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No, it’s most likely not the same girl. I would think they are already compared scientificaly... unfortunately I don’t think Denmark or Norway have a puplic system like Namus, where anyone can view compared UI and missing persons.
However, stranger thinks have happened in this ‘bizz’ so I don’t think your opening comment is fair.

I agree, I don’t think they are one person, but I really appreciate any word and breath from all the people on this site to keep these cases alive. And I mean that in general.

 

[Beekarina]

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If you reread, you may note many of us have put ideas out quite some time ago, discussed the pros and cons, possibility for errors, and left things as they were.

Meanwhile, you're coming in hot.

 

[djtopcat]

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As for Camilla, I haven't studied the case in too much detail, but the extreme lifestyle change is probably the biggest clue here. Going from punk rocker to pious traditionalist tells me she probably just made the decision to drop off the radar by choice. I suppose she could have met with foul play on her long journey to this alleged organic farm/commune in Jutland, but if she didn't get murdered, suffer an accident, or commit suicide the most logical choice left is just disappearing to start a different life somewhere in the sticks with her new family. Happens all the time. I read that both her parents were dead and that caused the delay in reporting her missing to the police. Very little family ties is a perfect candidate for joining a cult/commune scenario to me. No tv, no radio, no newspapers to even acknowledge people were looking for her back then. Just speculation. I would check convents too.

 

[Beekarina]

Found this mention of Camilla's unclaimed inheritance in an article published in 2010. There is an error in the piece--it notes she disappeared at age 20??--but it is interesting, and shows a picture of the home she rented in Hornbaek:

Ingen spor: Kvinde forsvundet på 20. år

 

[Mrs. Badcrumble]

Found this mention of Camilla's unclaimed inheritance in an article published in 2010. There is an error in the piece--it notes she disappeared at age 20??--but it is interesting, and shows a picture of the home she rented in Hornbaek:

Ingen spor: Kvinde forsvundet på 20. år

Crossposting from JF's thread and bbm.

The article doesn't mention her age; the "20." in the headline (and article) translates as "20th", as in number of years passed since Camilla vanished* when the article was posted, not her age at the time she disappeared.

*it'actually number of years the authorities have held on to her inheritance and trying to get a hold of her so that she could claim it.
Juridical stuff.

 

[Beekarina]

Thanks for the clarification. I noticed mention of her disappearing at 23 as well, in another source, but that one seemed a tabloid. I ran it through Google translate to double check, but I guess not always accurate?

The article was from 2010, and Camilla vanished in 1986 or 1987. So...it must have been reposted in 2017 or something? It was the first mention I recall of her inheritance, but it may have been noted in the television special about her as well.

 

[andersgravlax]

Hej!

Looking at all the details here I don't really think she killed herself. My opinion is that she just disappeared, and was disillusioned with her current life. I think she spent some time at the commune in Jutland, and figured she'd prefer a quiet life. Denmark is really pretty safe, I don't think she'd meet with harm from some random person. Could be worth seeing if anybody living in Christiania (Freetown of Copenhagnen - Hippy place) has seen anybody looking like her hanging around or living there at some point. Even then, I'm not sure if it would be ethical to look. I really do think that there is solid chance that she is living a quiet life somewhere, in Denmark somewhere else in Europe where you don't need a passport to travel around. Thanks @Malene and @mrs.badcrumble for all the awesome work you two have done on this! Great write-ups and details! Creepily enough, Camilla looks like my Mom...a lot!

 

[djtopcat]

I chatted with a friend in my industry who is Danish and has spent a lot of time vacationing on the Jutland Peninsula. He said there's no end to remote rustic places someone could disappear to if they did not wish to be found. She wasn't just some party girl who grew out of her wild teens, she did a complete 180 at age 22/23 and started wearing traditional Danish clothing, shoes, braiding her hair etc. Could be a severe mental breakdown, but I think the most logical scenario is that she just opted for a simpler life. It doesn't seem that she had any real close family left that would prevent her from severing ties. I do know religious cults prey on women like this. No idea if this "organic farm" was in that category, but it wouldn't shock me.

 

[andersgravlax]

@djtopcat. Your friend is not wrong. I'm Danish and I can back up that fact. Lots of quiet little towns where you could live an unassuming life.

 

[Beekarina]

Re: "It doesn't seem that she had any real close family left that would prevent her from severing ties"

Hmmm....I disagree. From the video clips earlier in thread, Camilla's brother and his family have been actively looking for her. It seems her brother still cares very much. *She may have felt differently, of course.

 

[djtopcat]

Re: "It doesn't seem that she had any real close family left that would prevent her from severing ties"

Hmmm....I disagree. From the video clips earlier in thread, Camilla's brother and his family have been actively looking for her. It seems her brother still cares very much. *She may have felt differently, of course.

Then why was she not reported missing in a timely manner? From what I read her disappearance was not reported for at least a month. That does not sound like a close relationship with her siblings to me.

 

[Beekarina]

Well, I would disagree with you on that as well. Adult siblings, leading different lifestyles could be out of touch for a few weeks, and still be considered close/caring.

I think this would be especially true in the late 80s when Camilla disappeared. Cellphones, e-mail, social media and all of the ways we are now accustomed to being instantly connected with everyone we know, would not have played a role. I used to go a few weeks at a time without speaking to my siblings when doing so meant writing a letter, traveling a few hours or planning a call around long distance rates.

It is my understanding Camilla's sister reported her missing, and her brother was the last family member who actually saw her. Does that match what you have read? I have seen a few different dates, and explanations given pointed towards her age. Which is also what many are saying here. i.e. She is an adult, so she is free to go start a new life and cut ties if she wishes.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Bumping up case.

 

[Mrs. Badcrumble]

I've been meaning to write on Camilla's thread for a while, and kinda address my observations in post #2 and the consequences of that post.

It's been super weird seeing this theory getting so much attention, not only here on WS, but also on other forums and platforms. It's been even more frustrating seeing how a "journalist" in a well-known tabloid newspaper claimed to have found an image of "Jennifer" alive, not bothering to research said image a little further, turning this into an Escherian labyrinth of mistaken confusion (seriously, tho.. A simple Google search would've told them that it was Camilla, not an alive JF).

I swear, my eyes have been rolling so hard at times I've thought they might never roll back to normal again

Strangely enough, both Camilla and "Jennifer" help each other getting exposure on their respective cases when people are Googling them, so I guess there's also a silver lining in all of this. I'm also certain if I hadn't been the one noticing the similarity between the two, someone else would have, but please: Unless we're told otherwise from credible sources, the image is of Camilla, not JF!

 

[Beekarina]

Simply theory, a passing thought here, but I wonder if Camilla and JF could be distant cousins? I know this sounds a bit out there, but I've been working on my family tree quite a bit this past year or two, and I'm often surprised by how much resemblance I have found between close family members, and then say a random cousin who is a 3rd, 5th or so on. I was scanning my own DNA matches on one of the sites recently and found a 4th-6th cousin who could be my twin. Everyone in my family and circle of friends on social media had a good laugh, and I immediately messaged the cousin to express my shock. You never know....

Or mor likely, JF may be Danish, Danish American, etc

 

[Mrs. Badcrumble]

Bumping Camilla's thread with her Yellow Notice at Interpol:

View Yellow Notices

Identity particulars​

Family name	STEINAA
Forename	CAMILLA
Gender	Female
Date of birth	16/08/1961 (64 years old)
Place of birth	HUSUM, Denmark
Nationality	Denmark
Place of disappearance	North Zealand
Date of disappearance	01/01/1987 (When 25 years old)
Issuing country	Denmark
Distinguishing marks and characteristics	White spot on one of the front teeth. Tattoo on the ankle resembling an anchor. Light squinting.

Physical description​

Height	1.75 metres
Colour of hair	Brown

Details​

Father's family name and forename	STEINAA IB BERNHARD
Mother's family name and forename	SKJØDT KIRSTEN
Language(s) spoken	Danish

 

[Beekarina]

Forsvundet i 33 år: Nye oplysninger om Camilla-mysteriet

Læs mere her

ekstrabladet.dk

"
Several of her friends and family remember that the young woman changed around 1982-83 and suddenly appeared wearing only a sheet, bare toes and short, shaggy hair. Thoughts turned to something religious or cult-like.


Her younger brother Grane Steinaa has previously told Ekstra Bladet that he also noticed the change. At one point, her older sister moved into the first floor of his townhouse in Østerbro in Copenhagen.

- Camilla came with a cart tied together with canvas fabric because she didn't want to use nails, she made the mattresses from straw, and she wasn't much for using the stove, he said.

- She cooked vegetables in cast iron pots and was very upset that we couldn't make a fire in the garden so she could cook over it."

Interesting passage. Translated to English, roughly.....

Edited: The above also clarifies Camilla's parents were both deceased when she went missing. It has been awhile since I thought about this case, but rereading a bit I know another member asked why family did not report her missing ASAP.

Again, translated "
While in fact her disappearance back in 1987 was not mentioned at all in the media. Both her parents were dead at the time, and although her younger sister reported her missing at Station 1 in Copenhagen, she was only registered as missing in the police records in 2010, apparently due to a communication breakdown, as it turned out when Ekstra Bladet described the mysterious disappearance case in 2015."

 

[Rikissa]

The first paragraph in the article in the post above mentions that she had plans to go to Jylland (the continental peninsula of Denmark), and live on a farm that produced ecological vegetables. I wonder if she instead might have gone to Sweden, as it's less than 30 minutes to Malmö, back in 1987 a ferry ride. Back then there was still an active 'alternative, and back to nature' movement in Sweden, and if joining some collective on the countryside, she could well have stayed hidden, there is lots of Sweden that's sparsely inhabitated. Not that she would have been able to stay hidden for this long in Sweden (unless she somehow acquired false identity papers), but for the first years or so, before something might have gone wrong.

 

[Beekarina]

I think that is a really good possibility. She may have met someone in a setting like that, and then both moved on to another country with more relaxed systems and is still alive under an alias.

It would be pretty difficult/impossible to exist anywhere in Scandinavia today, as you said, completely off the grid, but maybe she somehow got a little place up North early on and is a total recluse and not involved in society? I have no idea how a person would pull that off in Sweden though. Do you think anyone could do it? Or would false papers be the only way with everything so digital and connected to your personnummer, etc?

It is an interesting to think about. I hope she is alive somewhere. Always the best outcome.

 

[Rikissa]

I think that is a really good possibility. She may have met someone in a setting like that, and then both moved on to another country with more relaxed systems and is still alive under an alias.

It would be pretty difficult/impossible to exist anywhere in Scandinavia today, as you said, completely off the grid, but maybe she somehow got a little place up North early on and is a total recluse and not involved in society? I have no idea how a person would pull that off in Sweden though. Do you think anyone could do it? Or would false papers be the only way with everything so digital and connected to your personnummer, etc?

It is an interesting to think about. I hope she is alive somewhere. Always the best outcome.

Today it would be almost impossible to exist in Sweden without having an identity card and without a personal number. It would have been easier back in the late 1980s and 1990s, and if living in some kind of collective with several other people, maybe 'sharing' an identity card with another woman when needed.