'Where do I start to rebuild': Hospitality worker distraught after the van she had been living in di

A hospitality worker 'living the dream' by travelling along the scenic NSW central coast in her beloved van is shattered after it vanished - before turning up destroyed.

Alisha Manning was living out of her van when she parked it in a side street in Newcastle in early December so she could work and stay at a hotel during the peak summer period.

When she came back four weeks later, her van, which was registered, was gone - along with everything she owned which was inside it.

Ms Manning at first assumed a local had called the council to have the car impounded but after door-knocking the street and numerous calls she tracked it down to a vehicle spare parts company. 

She found her missing Mitsubishi Delica - which she had named Dahlia - at the car yard completely destroyed and plucked for parts, leaving her to now demand answers about how it got there. 

Alisha Manning parked her beloved van, which was also her home - in a Newcastle side street for four weeks over the Christmas period while she was working

When she returned Ms Manning found that someone had sold her car to a spare parts salvage yard and that it had been mostly destroyed

Ms Manning had been living out of the van for months as she travelled and now her belongings are gone and she has nowhere to live.

'Where do I start to rebuild? Four years I lived in her on and off and I think the happiest memories I've ever had in my life were spent in that van,' she told A Current Affair.

The van had been found at a car spare parts business which claimed that that it had been contacted by the owner who was looking to sell. 

A tow truck owner who works for the business said the keys to the van had been given to them during the pickup and management confirmed they collected the registration and personal details of the person. 

But a furious Ms Manning rebuked this claim and insisted that she was still in possession of the only set of keys to the van. 

Ms Manning had been living out of the van for months as she travelled and now her belongings are gone and she has nowhere to live

When the program visited the parts yard with Ms Manning to check on the condition of her vehicle, they were confronted by a worker who asked them to leave. 

The unnamed worked claimed he had no idea where the van came from but that his manager would have more answers. 

When Ms Manning asked him to call the manager, he refused. 

|A tearful Ms Manning said that all of the contents inside the partially crushed van were her only possessions, including a $350 tent and a stove top.

'It's completely destroyed, every window is smashed and my property gone.' 

Ms Manning had been 'living the dream' camping around the Central Coast before her van was taken

After reporting the incident to police Ms Manning was initially told that it was a civil matter and that they could not help.

Now police are investigating the circumstances around the van's fraudulent sale and Ms Manning is pursuing civil action. 

Despite the setback Ms Manning said she is intent on returning to travelling.  

'I'm not willing to turn around and say its over, (to say) there's the end of my dream and travels, because someone did a lousy thing to me,' Ms Manning said.

READ MORE: Two men killed in crash involving stolen car

The fatal collision unfolded along Camp Road at Broadmeadows, in Melbourne 's north, at 5.30am

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