The disappearance of 15-year-old Olivia Rutherford has baffled police, friends and family, who say her actions are totally out of character.
Olivia was last seen on Friday about 6pm by friends in central Wellington after she had bunked school for the day, something she had never done before, her mother said.
Confusion has surrounded a phone call made on Friday morning to St Mary's College, where Olivia was a student, by a woman saying Olivia was ill and would not be going to school that day.
The caller was not the missing girl's mother.
Detective Senior Sergeant Paul Borrell yesterday told a press conference police were working with the school's principal over who had left the message.
On Saturday morning the teenager's bag and wallet were found on a bridge near the waterfront.
A team of eight police divers scoured the waterfront between Frank Kitts Park and the Taranaki St wharf, while searchers combed parks and bush around the city boundaries, Mr Borrell said.
Police were keeping an open mind about what has happened.
"We're not specifically thinking this is foul play, however, we have to be open-minded that that is a possibility."
Police had spoken with some of Olivia's friends and had gained an insight into her frame of mind.
Olivia was upset on the day she disappeared, but Mr Borrell would not reveal why she was feeling that way.
"Teenagers can be emotional and we believe she has been fragile and upset on Friday."
If friends were helping her to keep low, they should contact police to let them know she was safe, Mr Borrell said.
"I urge if there's friends who are thinking they're doing the right thing by keeping her with them, that we need to know where she is and if she's safe," he said.
"If that's the case here, there's a lot of people very, very concerned about Olivia, particularly her family and school friends, principal and obviously us as well."
Police were monitoring Olivia's cellphone, but the last message was sent on Friday evening, about 6pm. Since then the phone had been either turned off or had run out of batteries, so was impossible to trace.
They were also watching her bank account, but would not say if it had been used since she was last seen.
Olivia's mother, Elizabeth Rutherford, said earlier it was out of character for her daughter not to keep in touch.
Olivia was described as a light skinned European of thin build, about 160cm tall, with strawberry blonde hair and blue coloured dental braces.
She was wearing blue jeans, a white T-shirt and a blue cardigan.
