previous segments of Where is Emma Fillipoff
ONE: The Grieving Mothers of Perth, Ontario
The day she went missing, Emma’s actions indicated that perhaps she was planning for something. Police say that on the morning of her disappearance, Emma had spoken to staff at the Chateau Victoria Hotel. There she had parked her van which contained almost all of her possessions, including her passport, laptop, journals and camera.
At 8:23 a.m., she purchased a $200 pre-paid credit card at a 7-11. Security footage shows Emma hesitating before she leaves the store. She keeps opening and closing the door. She alternates between frantically, anxiously looking outside, and pacing and waiting in the 7-11.
Some people think that on November 28, Emma visited the library around noon. She used to sit and read in the children’s section. Emma seemed to be the kind of girl who could fit in almost anywhere. But did she feel like she belonged in any of these places?
Emma:
"I chased death all my life. Because I was dead.
Sleeping was escape from all the pain.
And stories were the sweet music rain.
I love my mom.
But I could not cause her pain."
Where is Emma Fillipoff
TWO: She's Missing
ONE: The Grieving Mothers of Perth, Ontario
Three:
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
The day she went missing, Emma’s actions indicated that perhaps she was planning for something. Police say that on the morning of her disappearance, Emma had spoken to staff at the Chateau Victoria Hotel. There she had parked her van which contained almost all of her possessions, including her passport, laptop, journals and camera.
At 8:23 a.m., she purchased a $200 pre-paid credit card at a 7-11. Security footage shows Emma hesitating before she leaves the store. She keeps opening and closing the door. She alternates between frantically, anxiously looking outside, and pacing and waiting in the 7-11.
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| Emma paces in and out of the YMCA, about a week before her disappearance. Footage of her in the 7-11 is included in the Fifth Estate documentary, "Finding Emma." |
“I feel like I’m being stalked,” her
journals say.
Even earlier that day, Emma had called
Shelley. “Don’t come, not today Mom, not today,” she'd told her, the same words
she’d repeated so many times over the past five days. Shelley says that
the call came around 7:30 a.m., Eastern Time. In Victoria, it would have been
4:30 in the morning. Had Emma slept at all the night? Without telling Emma,
Shelley made arrangements to fly out and get her.Some people think that on November 28, Emma visited the library around noon. She used to sit and read in the children’s section. Emma seemed to be the kind of girl who could fit in almost anywhere. But did she feel like she belonged in any of these places?
Emma:
"I chased death all my life. Because I was dead.
Sleeping was escape from all the pain.
And stories were the sweet music rain.
I love my mom.
But I could not cause her pain."
For the last nine months before she
disappeared, Emma lived on and off at Sandi Merriman House, a women’s shelter.
Nobody really knows why. Shelley had only found out she’d been staying there a
few days before Emma vanished. The emails she’d been sending her friends and
mother had been vague, bubbly and poetic. “Life is love.” “Everything is
perfect and beautiful.” That sort of thing.
Sandi Merriman staff say that they saw
Emma leave the shelter at about 6 p.m. Minutes earlier, at 5:54 p.m., Emma had
purchased a pre-paid cell phone at the same 7-11 where she’d bought the
pre-paid credit card that morning. It is curious that she would buy a cellphone
now, since she’d never owned or wanted one before. The phone was never
activated. Just like when Emma bought the credit card, she seemed afraid to
exit the store, peering out the door as though looking for someone she didn’t
want to see.
At 6:10 p.m. she got in a cab near the
shelter and asked to go to the airport. The cab driver told her it would be 60
bucks. Emma had two to three thousand dollars in her bank account, but she told
the driver she couldn’t afford the fare. The cab driver said she’d been acting
weird. She insisted that he drop her off exactly where he’d found her. Before
getting out, she asked him if she could sit in his car for awhile. She clearly
didn’t want to leave. We don’t know if there was actually someone out there or if
it was just in her mind. The cab driver had his radio on. Emma stared at it.
Visibly frightened, she asked, “what’s that noise? Why is there noise coming
out of that?” She paid for the ride with her bank card, and left.
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| Emma, with the long braids she used to wear |
Between 7 and 8 p.m., a
friend of Emma's ran into her near the Empress Hotel which is somewhat
close to the water. Barefoot and clutching her shoes, Emma seemed anxious,
disoriented and out of it. Her friend called 9-1-1. Police claim that they
questioned her extensively, and felt that she was not a harm to herself or
others.
According to the police
officer who was interviewed on the Fifth Estate documentary, Emma told
them, “I’m just working through some things right now. I’m going for a walk and
then I’m going to a friend’s house.” It’s not an enormous surprise that
up until the last moment anyone saw her, Emma wouldn’t let on to how much she
was suffering. Still, Shelley feels adamant that the police did not do due
diligence in letting someone as vulnerable as Emma walk off into the night. It
would have been so easy for them to accompany her to her friend’s house, or
wherever she was going. Instead they simply let her go.
Three hours after Emma was last seen,
Shelley arrived at Sandy Merriman House, only to discover that Emma had not
claimed her bed. Immediately, Shelley contacted the police. They declared Emma
a missing person, but Shelley maintains that they did nothing for three or four
days. “They told me she was out partying,” Shelley said. Shelley insisted that
her daughter was not a partier. Familiar with addicts of all kinds, the women’s
shelter staff confirmed Shelley’s belief, reporting that Emma showed no
signs of drug use.
There were errors on the police’s
initial press release regarding Emma’s disappearance. The press release stated
that Emma was last seen at a different corner and that she was with friends.
When Shelley inquired about it, the person at the office claimed it was a typo.
“Why don’t you focus on looking for your daughter?” she’d told Shelley.
End of Part Three.
-Written by Erica J. Schmidt
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| Source: The Fifth Estate (CBC) Clues That May Help in the Search for Emma Fillipoff |
Read More:
ONE: The Grieving Mothers of Perth, OntarioTWO: She's Missing
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| HAVE YOU SEEN EMMA? Please Share Your Stories and Tips Help Find Emma Fillipoff Facebook Group Email Erica: ericaschmidt85(at)gmail(dot)com (contact form below) Email Shelley: fillipoff(at)hotmail(dot)com Call the police. Exuberant Bodhisattva on Facebook Erica on Twitter: @mypelvicfloor |
