Fears are mounting for a Far North woman who was last seen five weeks ago.
The last known sighting of Theres'a Urlich was on February 4 when she was hitch-hiking south on State Highway 1 between Awanui and Kaitaia.
Senior Sergeant Sarah Wihongi, of Kaitaia police, said Urlich's family was growing increasingly concerned as time went by without contact. It was out of character for her to be missing for so long.
Police had done the usual missing person checks, looked for her in and around Kaitaia, and called for sightings via the Northland Police Facebook page. That had sparked plenty of concerns about her welfare but no concrete information.
''She's a friendly soul and quite distinctive, so she's well known around Kaitaia.''
