The remains of a beautiful student who fled the Scientologist sect where all of her family were key members have been found in a German forest after she disappeared three years ago.
Yolanda Klug, a 26-year-old student from Leipzig, disappeared on 25th September 2019 after telling her friends at her shared apartment that she was taking a bus to IKEA and would meet up with a pal in the evening.
She was never heard from again, and investigators later determined that her phone had been switched off at about 2pm that day.
Yolanda’s disappearance has mystified investigators for years, but in late February, a person walking in a forested area in the Burgenland district of Saxony-Anhalt discovered some bones.
Forensic tests were performed on the remains with the authorities confirming on Thursday, 2nd March, that they belonged to Yolanda.
Investigators are quoted in local media saying: “On Saturday, 25th February, 2023, a passer-by found bones in a forest area in the Burgenland district, Saxony-Anhalt, and then informed the police. The forensic examination of the bones showed that they were human bones.”
The authorities added: “The forensic examination of the bones revealed that they are human bones and that they come from Yolanda Klug.”
Previous investigations had established that Yolanda was a Scientologist until 2017, when she left the organisation, with investigators reportedly looking into the organisation as part of their investigation.
The day before her disappearance, Yolanda had dinner with her father and told them about her plans for the following day.
Her father, Peter Klug, as well as her mother and her sister, are reportedly closely connected to Scientology, with German media reporting that her dad took courses on a Scientology cruise ship, her mother was a press officer for the Swiss branch of Scientology and her sisters a member of the SeaOrg, also known as the Sea Organization, which is a Scientologist organisation.
Large searches conducted by the police with sniffer dogs proved futile in locating her body. There was also reportedly EUR 8,000 (GBP 7,000) in her bank account, which was untouched and which led investigators to rule out theft as a motive for her disappearance.
There are currently no indications that both parties were involved in the young woman’s disappearance and further investigations are needed to establish how she died, according to local media.
Investigators said: “There are currently no indications of third-party negligence.”
