Angie Fuller’s close friend breaks silence to help find the missing mum

A close friend of a Territory mum missing for almost two years has broken her silence in an attempt to help solve the mystery of her disappearance. Read what she said.

Angie Fuller and Jake Peters.

Almost two years after she last saw her alive, a close friend of Territory woman Angie Fuller has gone public to help investigators try and solve the mum-of-two’s disappearance.

Ms Fuller, 30, was last seen on the side of the Stuart Highway near the Tanami Road intersection on January 9, 2023 when she and best friend Loraine Baumgarten stopped to say farewell.

The pair had driven in separate vehicles up the Stuart Highway and were parting ways – Ms Baumgarten heading to work in Alice Springs, and Angie to catch-up with new boyfriend Jake Peters at his Burt Plains home.

For Ms Baumgarten, the memories of that last farewell are still clear in her mind.

Speaking to Seven West Media, she recalled how her friend of seven years was returning to Alice Springs after spending Christmas 2022 with her family in Darwin.

On January 8, the previous day, the two women had set off early from Darwin for the 1500km drive to Alice Springs.

Loraine Baumgarten and Angie Fuller, the night before Ms Fuller disappeared.

After an unsettled few years including more than two years in Holtze prison for drugs charges, Ms Fuller was preparing to start a new life in Alice Springs with a new job at a drug rehabilitation services provider, a new home, and a new boyfriend.

Along the way they’d stopped for selfies at various NT tourist spots and spent the night at Renner Springs, about halfway between Alice Springs and Darwin.

Sitting at the Alice Springs intersection, Ms Baumgarten recalled her friend “plumping up her lips” as she prepared to reunite with Peters.

“She was plumping up her lips, trying to look pretty to go and see him,” Ms Baumgarten said.

“We were just mucking around because she had bought this new lip plumper and we were both sitting there plumping up our lips and laughing.

“I took photos of her just minutes before she pulled up at his house. She was just in the best frame of mind when she left.”

Angie Fuller and Jake Peters

Ms Baumgarten said her and Ms Fuller exchanged texts throughout the afternoon and evening before losing contact.

“At one point I tried to call her but I couldn’t get through,” she said.

“Her phone was off.”

When Ms Fuller lost mobile contact she assumed it was because of dodgy telephone reception.

The last confirmed sighting of Ms Fuller was at 6.40pm on January 9 when she and Peters were captured on CCTV at a service station north of Alice Springs.

Some time later, Ms Fuller was last seen running into the bush after becoming involved in an incident with another vehicle along Tanami Rd.

Loraine Baumgarten and Angie Fuller having fun at Renner Springs.

Her red Toyota Corolla was reported veering off the road, with her and Peters seen running into surrounding bushland without a trace.

Mr Peters told police that multiple vehicles full of gangsters ran them off the road, chasing him and Ms Fuller into the bush, while shooting at them.

Two days later on the night of January 11, Peters reported Ms Fuller missing, sparking an unsuccessful 400sq km search for clues around Alice Springs.

Police have offered a $250,000 reward for information that will help them find Ms Fuller and unlock the mystery of her disappearance.

Ms Fuller’s vehicle was later found abandoned on the side of Tanami Rd.

One of a number of people interviewed by NT Police in relation to the disappearance, Ms Baumgarten is desperate for her friend to be found.

“I’d known her for seven years and she was just the best chick,” Ms Baumgarten said. “Somebody out there knows what happened to her and I just want to know what happened.”

Police said Major Crime officers are still investigating Ms Fuller’s disappearance and working to identify any suspects. They urged anybody with information to contact NT Police with police reference number NTP-2310228143.

Originally published as Angie Fuller’s close friend breaks silence to help find the missing mum