• Police want new information on Leonie Emery, missing since 2018.
• Emery’s disappearance went unreported for a year due to her family’s familiarity with her frequent absences, police say.
• Her story will be featured in Cold Case on TVNZ 1 this evening.

Police are hoping to get fresh information about a mother of four whose disappearance seven years ago went unreported to authorities for a year.

Leonie Emery went missing in 2018. She was 25 at the time.

Police believe she was a victim of foul play.

Leonie Emery went missing in 2018. She was 25 at the time. Photo / New Zealand Police

Emery was not reported missing until a year later because “she was a free spirit who moved around regularly, so her family were used to regular periods of no contact”, Detective Senior Sergeant Rob Hunkin said.

She was last seen at a relative’s house in Papakura about late January and early February 2018. She had also been spending time in the Waikato about that time.

“Where did she go when she left and who was she with? These are some of the questions we need the public’s help with,” Hunkin said.

Her story will feature on an episode of Cold Case on TVNZ1 this evening.

“[It] will outline key elements of this investigation and we hope it will prompt someone to come forward with information which will help us get the answers Leonie’s whānau desperately want,” Hunkin said.

“We know there are people out there with key information police need. Please tune in on Monday at 8.30pm to watch the episode. We urge anyone with information, no matter how small you might think it is, to contact police.”

Hunkin said police investigators had looked into several possible scenarios around her disappearance, “but believe it is most likely that Leonie has been the victim of foul play”.