A Disappearance in Adelaide
On October 18, 1984, police were told that 18-year-old Stella Farrugia was missing. Her boyfriend, Wojciech Kubale, was the one who made the initial report.
He told investigators that he had last seen Stella at their home on Seaview Road in Henley Beach, Adelaide, the previous day. When he returned home after being out, Stella was gone.
But she had not simply walked away with nothing. Her dog was still there, along with her bank books and personal belongings. There was no clear indication of where she had gone or why.
From that day onward, there has been no confirmed sighting of Stella.
A Complicated Family Background
Stella was the youngest child of Michael and Rose Farrugia, a Maltese couple who had immigrated to Australia in the late 1950s. She grew up in Sunshine, Victoria, and was remembered as outgoing, kind and generous.
At the same time, Stella was described as somewhat naïve and easily influenced.
Her relationship with her parents was reportedly difficult. The family held traditional views shaped by their Maltese background, and those expectations sometimes clashed with Stella’s outlook and the changing Australian society around her.
In late 1983, Stella made an unexpected decision. She left Victoria and travelled to Queensland to stay with her older sister Christine, who had recently married and was living in Cairns.
It was there that Stella entered a relationship that would eventually bring her to South Australia.
Relationships and Warning Signs
Stella and her boyfriend eventually moved to Adelaide in 1984. During that period, the couple lived at several different addresses before settling in Henley Beach.
The relationship later deteriorated, and Stella moved out and began living with another man, Wojciech Kubale.
There were suggestions of domestic violence connected to both relationships. However, no formal police reports had been made at the time, making it difficult to establish exactly what had happened behind closed doors.
After Stella disappeared, questions surrounding those relationships became increasingly important to investigators.
Police also examined a property at Mount Torrens where Stella had previously stayed with her first boyfriend. Searches were conducted at several locations, but nothing was found that could explain what had happened to her.
The Letter and the Silent Phone Calls
Before her disappearance, Stella had written to her sister with an important request. She wanted Christine to contact her by a particular date and warned that, if she did not, Stella would sever contact with her.
The deadline passed before Christine managed to respond.
But Stella never answered.
As the weeks went by, the family became increasingly concerned. At one point, Stella’s boyfriend contacted them asking where she was. That was when her disappearance began to take on a much more serious meaning for those who knew her.
Another strange detail emerged over the years.
Stella’s family reportedly received a series of unexplained telephone calls. When someone answered, the caller remained silent.
The calls continued irregularly for several years, although they gradually became less frequent. Eventually, around five or six years after Stella disappeared, they stopped altogether.
No confirmed explanation for those calls has been established.
Two Possibilities
Investigators have considered two broad possibilities in Stella’s disappearance.
One is that she deliberately walked away from her previous life and chose to cut contact with her family. Police have also considered whether someone may have helped her leave and start again somewhere else.
The other possibility is that Stella became the victim of foul play.
Both of the men she was involved with around the time of her disappearance have remained persons of interest. One of them has since died.
Despite years of appeals for information, Stella has never contacted her family or authorities, and no confirmed evidence has established where she went after leaving Henley Beach.
Her continued absence has led investigators to believe she may no longer be alive, although the circumstances surrounding her disappearance remain unresolved.
A Mystery That Has Lasted Decades
More than four decades have passed since Stella Farrugia disappeared at just 18 years old.
There has been no confirmed sighting, no recovered remains and no definitive explanation for what happened to her.
Her family was left with unanswered questions, while investigators continued examining possible locations and following whatever information emerged.
A reward of up to $200,000 is offered for information that leads to the recovery of Stella’s remains or information resulting in a conviction.
Anyone with information can contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, and anonymous reports can be made.
For Stella’s family, the mystery remains the same: what happened to the young woman who disappeared from Henley Beach in October 1984?
This story is based on publicly available information and reported facts. It has been independently written and presented for informational purposes. Images, if any, belong to their respective owners.