Disappearance of Samantha Murphy

Disappearance of Samantha Murphy

Date	4 February 2024
Location	Ballarat, Victoria, Australia
Missing	Samantha Murphy
Accused	Patrick Orren Stephenson
Charges	Murder
Publication bans	Initial court suppression of name of accused

Samantha Murphy was a 51-year-old Australian woman who went missing on 4 February 2024. She left her Ballarat, Victoria, home for a morning run, but failed to return home.

Searches carried out over several days failed to find any evidence of what happened to Murphy. Victoria Police treated the disappearance as suspicious, later stating that they believed she was dead. On 6 March, a man was arrested in connection with her disappearance and was subsequently charged with murder. Murphy's body has not been found, although some of her belongings were found approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) south of Ballarat.

Background

Born on 30 March 1972,^[1] Samantha Murphy was a 51-year-old Australian woman who lived in Ballarat, a large rural city in the Central Highlands region of Victoria. She was the mother of three children, and ran a small business with her husband, Michael, near the family home.^[2] Murphy was Caucasian, approximately 173 centimetres (5 ft 8 in), slim, and had shoulder-length blonde hair.^[3]

Disappearance

On 3 February 2024, Murphy had dinner with her husband and some mutual friends at their home. During this dinner, Murphy said she had been regularly walking and running in local bushland and planned to run 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) at Woowookarung Regional Park the next day.^[2] Murphy was captured by a CCTV camera the following day at approximately 7 am AEDT in the driveway of her home.^[2][3] She was due to attend a family event at 11 am. After she failed to attend, her family contacted police to report her missing.^[4]

Investigation and search

Murphy's mobile phone signalled a cellular tower in Buninyong, approximately 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) from her home,^[5] although signals from multiple towers are required to triangulate the location of a mobile device.^[6] The SOS function of Murphy's Apple Watch, which she was wearing on her run, was not activated.^[5] GPS analysis showed that she had run 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) through Woowookarung Regional Park to Mount Clear, at which point there may have been an "anomaly" or "disturbance" in the GPS data.^[7]

For several days, Victoria Police (including the Search and Rescue Squad, dog squad, Mounted Branch, and Air Wing), the Victoria State Emergency Service, Parks Victoria and the Country Fire Authority conducted an extensive search of the park and surrounding areas.^[8] The search initially commenced at Woowookarung Regional Park and nearby bushland; no sign of Murphy or her belongings were found and police ruled out the possibility of her having suffered a medical episode or leaving the area of her own accord.^[9] The search then expanded to the wider Ballarat area, including Black Hill and Brown Hill.^[10] After five days, the search was scaled back and the Missing Persons Squad took over the investigation.^[11] Members of the public, both local to Ballarat and from across Victoria, continued searching.^[12] By 23 February, police said they suspected Murphy was deceased and believed "one or more parties" may have been involved in her disappearance.^{[9][13][14][15]}

On 6 March, Patrick Orren Stephenson,^[16] a 22-year-old male from Scotsburn, was arrested in connection with Murphy's disappearance.^[17] The following day, he was charged with murder.^[18][19] The police hypothesis is that Stephenson, who was not known to Murphy's family, killed her at Mount Clear.^[20] Stephenson's name was initially subject to a suppression order.^[21][22]

On 29 May, Murphy's wallet containing her ID cards and mobile phone was found on the bank of an agricultural dam during a targeted search of a property near Durham Lead, approximately 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) south of Buninyong.^[23] Murphy's body has not been found.^[24]

Response

Murphy's disappearance resulted in a significant community response. Forensic psychologist Tim Watson-Munro described the disappearance as "very unusual" and stated he had never before heard of a case involving a person going missing in the same way as Murphy.^[25] A local community member set up a group on Facebook to coordinate local volunteers.^[26] As the membership grew, so too did posts speculating about Murphy's disappearance alongside conspiracy theories and claims by psychic mediums. The group's creator, who worked openly with detectives to utilise the groups information, advocated for closure of the group due to the local speculation and online trolls interrupting the investigation. Similar activity was seen on Reddit, and the Commissioner of Victoria Police, Shane Patton, called on the public to cease speculating.^[26]

See also

• List of people who disappeared

References

1. Magennis, Molly (5 April 2024). "'She's just not coming back': Samantha Murphy's family mark her birthday without her for the first time". 7 News. Retrieved 21 April 2024. [Murphy's family] celebrated what would have been Samantha's 52nd birthday on Saturday.
2. Crowe, Alex (9 February 2024). "A CCTV snap, a morning run, then nothing. The search for Samantha Murphy". The Age. Archived from the original on 11 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
3. Mayers, Laura (5 February 2024). "Victoria Police, SES to search state forest for missing Ballarat woman". ABC News. Archived from the original on 20 February 2024. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
4. Ore, Adeshola (14 February 2024). "Missing Ballarat woman Samantha Murphy's disappearance 'suspicious' and 'unusual', police say". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
5. Wu, David (9 February 2024). "Search for missing mum scaled back as police focus efforts on phone data". Skynews (Australia). Archived from the original on 14 February 2024. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
6. Hermant, Norman; Asher, Nicole (13 February 2024). "Former detective believes police investigating Samantha Murphy disappearance should look at suspects from year-old attack". ABC News (Australia). Archived from the original on 14 February 2024. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
7. Collis, Danielle (29 February 2024). "'Anomaly' in digital data could be clue to Samantha Murphy's disappearance". 9now.nine.com.au. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
8. Finch, Nicholas (11 February 2024). "Search for Ballarat mum Samantha Murphy enters its second week". The Australian. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
9. Crowe, Alex; Estcourt, David; Dexter, Rachael (22 February 2024). "Police tap phone data in search for missing mum Samantha Murphy". The Age. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
10. Kirkham, Rochelle (5 February 2024). "Search area expands for missing Ballarat woman Samantha Murphy". ABC News. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
11. Neal, Matt (10 February 2024). "Call for dashcam footage expanded as bushland search for missing Ballarat woman winds back". ABC News. Archived from the original on 12 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
12. McMillan, Ashleigh (11 February 2024). "Search for Samantha Murphy scaled back, but volunteers continue combing bush". The Age. Archived from the original on 12 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
13. Johnston, Damon (23 February 2024). "Breakthrough in search for Sam Murphy". The Australian. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
14. Lazzaro, Kellie; Mayers, Laura (22 February 2024). "Samantha Murphy most likely dead, police say, as phone clue leads to new search". ABC News. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
15. Crowe, Alex; Estcourt, David (22 February 2024). "Police doubt missing mum Samantha Murphy is alive, probe possible body removal". The Age. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
16. "Samantha Murphy's alleged killer hit with fresh charges". www.9news.com.au. 3 May 2024. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
17. "Ballarat man arrested over suspicious disappearance of Samantha Murphy". ABC News. 6 March 2024. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
18. "Ballarat man charged with murder of missing mum Samantha Murphy". ABC News. 6 March 2024. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
19. Wind, Emily (7 March 2024). "Australia news live: man charged with murder of missing Ballarat woman Samantha Murphy, Victoria police say". the Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
20. Ore, Adeshola; Kolovos, Benita (7 March 2024). "Samantha Murphy: Victoria police allege man murdered Ballarat woman in 'deliberate attack'". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
21. Silva, Kristian (7 March 2024). "Here's why the name of Samantha Murphy's alleged killer remains a secret — for now". ABC News. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
22. Sciberras, Allanah (8 March 2024). "Samantha Murphy's alleged killer's ute seized by police". www.9news.com.au. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
23. "Husband knew instantly phone found near dam belonged to Samantha Murphy". www.9news.com.au. 30 May 2024. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
24. Mayers, Laura (14 November 2024). "Husband in courtroom to hear man accused of murdering Samantha Murphy plead not guilty". ABC News. Archived from the original on 19 November 2024. Retrieved 9 December 2024.
25. Sullivan, Reilly (12 February 2024). "'Psychopathic': Disturbing new theory about missing mum Samantha Murphy". SkyNews Australia. Archived from the original on 13 February 2024. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
26. Ore, Adeshola (12 February 2024). "Psychics and amateur sleuths toss unfounded theories into search for missing Ballarat woman Samantha Murphy". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 14 February 2024. Retrieved 14 February 2024.