Missing Katy Perry songwriter Camela Leierth-Segura found safe, friend says

A songwriter who co-wrote one of Katy Perry’s hit singles and vanished earlier this year has been found safe, authorities and a friend of the artist confirmed.

Camela Leierth-Segura, 48, was last seen in Beverly Hills, California, on 29 June. The alarm was raised for the Sweden-born songwriter, after her sister, who lives in Sweden, was unable to get in touch with her for several weeks and contacted friends in the US.

The Beverly Hills Police Department told The Independent that the missing person investigation into Ms Leierth-Segura’s disappearance has now been closed. Cecilia Foss, a friend of the singer best known for co-writing Katy Perry’s 2013 song “Walking On Air”, also said that Ms Leierth-Segura was found in California.

“She was found a few hours ago, so she is safe right now,” Ms Foss said in a message to The Independent. “The family has asked for privacy and the police [haven’t] given me any details yet though so I only know that she was found so far.”

A spokesperson with Beverly Hills police said that no further details about the circumstances that led to closing the case will be released at this time. Ms Foss had previously told The Independent that it was unlike Ms Leierth-Segura to just vanish without a trace and the fact that her beloved 19-year-old cat Morris was also missing had made it even more of a mystery.

“She was always busy, always working toward her next goal,” Ms Foss said back in August. “But if I asked her to catch up and she was busy, she’d always respond, “don’t worry we’ll get tea soon.’”

Ms Foss and Ms Leierth-Segura met while working in the modelling industry in New York City. They found common ground being from Scandinavian countries, Ms Foss from Norway and Ms Leierth-Segura from Sweden.

Both have kept busy lives, but always managed to catch up every few weeks or months over tea. Ms Leierth-Segura has a passion for writing music and treats her cat Morris as her child, her friend said.

Another longtime friend Liz Montgomery was alerted by Ms Leierth-Segura’s sister in Sweden, which prompted her to call for a welfare check. Police responded to her last known address in Beverly Hills where the landlord informed them she had been evicted.

“She had mentioned it to all of us that she was having trouble; Covid definitely was not helpful for her because she’s a musician, model, actress, all that stuff,” Ms Montgomery previously told The Los Angeles Times. “And there was no money coming in.”

Neighbours told local news they hadn’t seen her in weeks. The usually well-tended plants on her balcony had died. There was no sign of her cat or her 2010 Ford Fusion with California plate 6KZJ725.

Ms Leierth-Segura’s last text message was sent on 29 June, and her Ford Fusion car was last seen on police cameras leaving Beverly Hills the following afternoon on 30 June, but it’s not clear who was driving the vehicle.

Ms Montgomery then filed a missing persons report with the Beverly Hills Police on 8 August. Beverly Hills Police had reassured the public that a thorough investigation was underway into her disappearance.

“The timing is especially crucial considering, the date she is stated to have gone missing compared to when it was reported to the police,” police said in a statement at the time.