A Dunedin mother-of-three missing since Thursday last week is in Australia, police have confirmed.
A police spokeswoman said today that Alice Tocher flew to Brisbane on Friday, and they were now working with her family and Interpol to establish Tocher's present address.
The 31-year-old was last seen dropping her daughter off in the Dunedin suburb of St Kilda.
A group of friends and concerned members of the community gathered at the Pirates Squash Club by Navy Park yesterday morning to conduct a search of the beach and surrounding areas, but found nothing.
Her family had taken to Facebook in an attempt to find the Dunedin mother, who had been missing since Thursday.
"She has three children, five siblings, parents and a large army of friends who would like her safely back home," the Facebook message said.
The plea elicited a response from another passenger on Friday's Air New Zealand Flight 805 from Christchurch to Brisbane. She had come to the other passenger's attention as Tocher had appeared very anxious and was escorted to the front of the plane by a flight attendant.
Tocher's family have called on members of the public in Brisbane to be on the lookout for her.
She is described as having a mix of red/black/brown hair, and was wearing a black zip jacket, blue tear away track pants and sneakers.