Carla Vicentini
Vicentini, circa 2006; Vicentini's tattoos
- Missing Since 02/09/2006
- Missing From Newark, New Jersey
- Classification Endangered Missing
- Sex Female
- Race White
- Date of Birth 04/29/1983 (41)
- Age 22 years old
- Height and Weight 5'7, 130 - 140 pounds
- Clothing/Jewelry Description A white sleeveless shirt, a blue Hugo Boss jacket, blue or white jeans, light brown high-heeled ankle boots, a silver ball in her navel, a silver ball in her tongue, a Mormaii sports wristwatch on her left wrist, a large silver ring on her ring finger and two silver rope necklaces, one with a pendant.
- Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Blonde hair, brown eyes. Vicentini's nickname is Carlinha. She has a pierced tongue, a pierced navel and multiple ear piercings, and she has previously fractured the right side of her collarbone. Vicentini has the following tattoos: a red and yellow chameleon on her hip, a tribal design on her lower back and a dark gray angel with opened wings on her back. Photographs of the tattoos are posted with this case summary. Vicentini's native language is Brazilian Portuguese; she speaks little English.
Details of Disappearance
Vicentini was last seen at approximately 2:00 a.m. on February 9, 2006 at the Adega Bar and Grill in the vicinity of the 100 block of Ferry Street in the Ironbound neighborhood of Newark, New Jersey. She had gone there to visit a friend who worked at the restaurant.
Vicentini left the establishment with a man who is described as Caucasian, in his thirties, 5'8 and 200 pounds, with blue eyes, short salt-and-pepper hair and an unshaven beard. He was wearing a black t-shirt. Her companion has not been identified, but his first name may have been Antonio.
He and Vicentini were drinking and talking with each other before they left together; it is unclear how they could communicate, as Vicentini speaks little English and the man did not speak Portuguese, her native language. The man was reportedly quiet and sullen.
When Vicentini left with the man, she told her friend she was going to the man's car to look at a photo and to talk. She may have been intoxicated at the time.
It is believed that she returned to her residence on Ferry Street near the restaurant after she was last seen, as her wallet, passport and jacket were found there. She has never been heard from again. The man she was last seen with is considered a person of interest in her disappearance.
Several days after Vicentini went missing, someone called her boss's cellular phone and screamed for help. The caller has never been identified and it's unclear whether the call was related to her case.
Vicentini was born and raised in a small agricultural town in Brazil, and came to the United States less than a month prior to her disappearance; she was planning to stay a few months as part of a cultural exchange program. She had saved her money to go to the U.S. and was very happy about the opportunity.
Vicentini was initially assigned to work at a White Castle restaurant and live in a small motel room with several other women in the program, but she became unhappy with the arrangement, moved out and changed jobs.
She was an engineering student at the time she went missing, lived with a fellow exchange student, and had just started a job at the Mediterranean Manor.
Vicentini's disappearance has been well-covered in the media in Brazil and in Portuguese-language newspapers in New Jersey, but the mainstream American press has given it little attention.
Authorities believe she disappeared under suspicious circumstances. Her mother believes she was murdered, since she never went more than a couple of days without getting in touch with her family.
Investigating Agency
- Newark Police Department 973-733-4336
Updated 6 times since October 12, 2004. Last updated August 30, 2017; details of disappearance updated.