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COPS are preparing to search a bushland area for the body of Samantha Murphy in a bombshell twist in the hunt for “Australia’s Nicola Bulley”.
The mum-of-three, 51, was last seen on February 4 leaving her residence on Eureka Street in Ballarat, Victoria, to go for a morning run in the Canadian State Forest.
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VICTORIA POLICE/UNPIXS
Alamy
AlamyAn experienced runner, Samantha was headed to the Canadian State Forest wearing black leggings and a maroon top for a nine-mile jog.
She was meant to join her husband Mick and their children for brunch at 11am but never made it back.
The mum’s disappearance sparked a large-scale search with locals volunteering to help scour the area but to no avail.
On February 9, homicide detectives from the Missing Persons Squad joined the search.
Ten days later police said they were treating her disappearance as suspicious.
And now, crews are expected to enter treacherous bushland near Grenville, south of Ballarat, as soon as the weather allows, Victoria Police Missing Persons Unit Detective Inspector Dave Dunstan told local media on Wednesday.
Although there have been a lot of rain in the area, it is predicted to clear by midday today.
The rugged terrain west of Enfield Plantation, which has been combed before in the seven months since Samantha vanished, is thought to be the location of the latest search.
At the Grenville Recreation Reserve, a sizable police contingent has assembled as officers could be seen getting ready to leave with the help of motorbikes, horses, and dogs.
Ian Wilson/NCA NewsWireIn the most recent extensive search, specialised officers from NSW Police and their Australian Federal counterparts joined detectives from the Missing Persons Squad on Tuesday.
According to Inspector Dunstan, throughout the previous month and a half, police had really been conducting sporadic searches in the area.
He said: “There are a number of areas in which we are actually searching in a number of different areas.”
Inspector Dunstan said that the adverse weather conditions posed a significant risk to search teams.
“The danger is there are a lot of mines here as well and that’s one of the reasons we’ve brought out Search and Rescue,” he explained.
“There are a lot of unidentified mines … so it’s super dangerous.”
It is understood that cops are scouring a number of locations within a three-kilometre radius of rough terrain.
A small group of media representatives will be brought into the area sometime on Wednesday, and up to 45 officers are expected to take part in the search.
It is unclear how long police will be in the area, but it is known that detectives are still optimistic that Samantha’s body will be found during the latest search.
The painstaking search for the mum who vanished in Australia has chilling echoes of the Nicola Bulley case that gripped the UK last year.
Since February, authorities have conducted many searches in wilderness areas as a component of their comprehensive inquiry into Samantha’s disappearance.
In June, ten minutes from her home in Buninyong, detectives discovered her cell phone next to a dam.
The phone was in almost pristine shape and was not broken.
The distance from Buninyonng to the Grenville new search is less than 15 km.
The mum’s body hasn’t been recovered since.
A month after her disappearance in February, authorities charged 22-year-old tradesman Patrick Orren Stephenson of murdering her at Mount Clear.
Prosecutors requested a 12-week adjournment of the committal mention during his most recent court appearance last month so they could review a brief of evidence that included “extensive” CCTV footage.
Stephenson is still being held and is scheduled to return to court on November 14.
His father, Orren Stephenson, was an Australian football player for Geelong and Richmond from 2012 to 2014.
Nicki Connolly/NCA NewsWireWhat happened to Samantha Murphy?
SAMANTHA Murphy, a 51-year-old mother from Ballarat, Victoria, went missing on February 4, 2024.
She was last seen leaving her home to go for a run in the nearby Canadian State Forest.
Despite extensive search efforts by authorities and volunteers, her whereabouts remain unknown.
In the months following her disappearance, several important developments unfolded.
In June, police found her mobile phone near an agricultural dam during a targeted search.
The discovery led to a major break in the case when after a 22-year-old man named Patrick Orren Stephenson was charged with her murder.
The accused is scheduled to return to court in November.
Recently, in September 2024, police launched a new search operation in bushland near Grenville, Victoria, hoping to locate her body.
Meanwhile, Samantha’s family and loved ones continue to hold out hope for answers.
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