On 12 January 2024 in Kraków, 59‑year‑old Ewa P. vanished while selling pastries; despite a two‑day, 350‑person search, her body was found days later.
Initial Situation
On 12 January 2024, 59‑year‑old Ewa P. sold pastries near a Kraków market square while her husband Janusz P. sold clothing on the same square. At 14:55 she handed him the day’s earnings and an empty trolley and said she would return home that evening.
Attempts to Find Her
After 16:00, Janusz called his wife at 17:40. She claimed she was on a bus but did not know the stop, and said she had broken her leg. He then phoned 112, reporting her possibly near Styczna Street and stating her last sighting was a large tree.
Phone Interactions
Communication was chaotic and intermittent; Ewa’s voice was disjointed, she would hang up, and she failed to respond to questions. She mentioned seeing large chimneys with flashing red lights 800–1,000 m away, and a football field about 100 m away from her position.
Search Operations
Two officers were sent to Styczna Street; searches extended to her home, surrounding farms, and Wadowa fields. Police dogs did not trail her, and monitoring footage from two bus lines revealed no evidence. Officers tried to locate her phone, asking it to log to various relay stations, but it did not transmit.
Circumstances of Death
On 14 January, a Kraków officer found Ewa’s body on a cultivated field near Kocmyrzów, roughly 300 m from the nearest houses. The temperature was about –1 °C, and snow lay on the ground. Medical examination ruled out alcohol, found no leg fracture, and attributed death to acute circulatory failure and cold exposure. She had been scheduled to take insulin at 17:00, and her diabetes could have caused disorientation.
