Missing Mooroolbark woman Yasmina was found safe and well by passers-by early Saturday morning.
Just minutes before a search party of 60 police and SES volunteers was due to depart, Mooroolbark Police received a call from a member of the public who had located Yasmina, who has autism and is non-verbal. She was found sitting in scrub on the corner of Cambridge and Swansea Roads just before 9am.
Yasmina’s mother Patricia and police held grave concerns for her safety after she went missing from her Mooroolbark home on Thursday 26 August.
The 20-year-old has been missing numerous times before and was known to frequent the Montrose area.
The police airwing searched the area from above overnight but had no leads.
Yarra Ranges Inspector Peter Muys said a man and his wife came across Yasmina while driving and were aware of a girl missing due to social media.
“They worked out what it was pretty quickly. They’ve helped her out and we are really indebted to them, they’ve given her a jacket of theirs, kept her calm at the location and called the police,” Inspector Muys said.
“It was a really special moment. We had been building up over three days, we had a number of people out yesterday and some specialist resources as well and all the volunteers from the SES that turned out today (Saturday 28 August) to try and help us scour the area.
Inspector Muys said the news shows him the community is very in touch with what goes on.
“What matters to us matters to them. They get together and they really make a difference,” he said.
Yasmina’s mother Patricia Townshend was relieved she had been found and extended her thanks to the public.
“It’s really great that she was found and that she was safe and well. The people who helped her, the passers-by, the media, it’s just such a fantastic result that there are caring people out there who are willing to stop and be involved and ring the police. I can’t thank them enough,” she said.
Yasmina was being checked over by the ambulance before going home for a nice warm bath and some much-needed food.
