By Lisa Edser For Daily Mail Australia
08:23 28 May 2024, updated 08:23 28 May 2024
An urgent search is underway for a man after police found his empty car smashed into a tree 10 days ago on a rural NSW road.
Gage Wilson, 31, was last seen on Hakea Crt in Mullumbimby about 5am on May 18.
His vehicle was found crashed into a tree on Koonyum Range Road in Wilsons Creek shortly afterward, but Wilson was nowhere to be found.
Mr Wilson who is on the autism spectrum, is described as being Caucasian and about 170cm-180cm tall, with short brown hair and tattoos on both legs and arms.
Police have urged local residents to thoroughly inspect their properties for any signs of Mr Wilson as the search for him continues.
A fresh search of the Wilsons Creek area resumed on Monday and continued on Tuesday.
His cousin, Elizabeth Kovacs, has been assisting with the search efforts.
‘We are worried people perceive Byron as a party area and aren’t seeing the human behind this (plea) that we’re desperately trying to find,’ she said.
‘He wasn’t into drugs or alcohol he was in Byron for the nature,’ she said.
‘He just vanished,’ Ms Kovacs said. ‘There was a car crash, we don’t know if he was hurt or if he has gone somewhere to get out of the weather.’
Police informed the family that they believe Mr Wilson may be in dense bushland. They also revealed that search dogs trained to locate human remains have been deployed.
A GoFundMe page set up to help search efforts said that Mr Wilson is ‘a unique individual with a wonderful generous heart’.
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‘(Gage is) known for his ability to make us all laugh. He is honest and authentic, and his presence is greatly missed,’ it said.
‘Police, family and friends are doing what they can to find Gage. We are concerned as he may be injured and lost and we need to get as many Missing Person posters and letterbox drops out in the area and extending our search via different avenues.’
Call police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 with any information.