On the 12th anniversary of Emma Fillipoff’s disappearance, Victoria police released a composite image of a man dubbed the “Green Shirt Guy” in an effort to generate leads in the case.
The image is based on decade-old security video from Vancouver’s Gastown district of a man in a green T-shirt with a pronounced limp, his left knee turned inward and sleeved tattoos who ripped down a missing poster for Fillipoff on May 27, 2014.
The man, described as six feet tall with a prominent scar in his hairline, reportedly told the owners of the Gastown store where the poster was hung that the woman used to be his girlfriend and had run away to escape her parents.
Advocates and Fillipoff’s family enlisted a forensic artist to create an age-progressed composite of the “Green Shirt Guy.”
Fillipoff, then 26, was last seen on Nov. 28, 2012 walking barefoot and in distress on Government Street near the Empress Hotel.
A passerby saw her and called 911. Victoria police said officers spoke with her at length and ensured her well-being before she continued on her way. She hasn’t been seen or heard from since.
Her red Mazda MPV 1993 van was found in the Chateau Victoria parking lot with almost all her belongings, including her passport, library card, digital camera, laptop, clothing and recently borrowed library books.
Despite hundreds of tips from across Canada and around the world, there have been no confirmed sightings of Fillipoff.
VicPD said its major crimes unit continues to investigate Fillipoff’s disappearance, following up on any tips it receives.
“All it could take is one person to help bring Emma home,” police said in a statement Thursday.
At the time of her disappearance, Emma was 5-foot-5 and weighed 90 to 110 pounds. She had brown eyes and light brown “unusually long” hair. She liked to wear knitted hats and did not have any tattoos or piercings.
Advocates have produced age-enhanced renderings of what Fillipoff would look like today.
Fillipoff moved to Victoria from Perth, Ont. in the fall of 2011 with no home or jobs lined up. She had told a friend she had a feeling that something amazing was going to happen.
She worked multiple jobs as a chef and in other positions in the food industry, but eventually moved to the street. Friends began to notice her erratic behaviour and apparent inner turmoil.
Anyone with information on Fillipoff or “Green Shirt Guy” is asked to call Victoria police at 250-995-7654 ext. 1.
For information on the case, go to https://helpfindemmafillipoff.ca/.
