Police described Samantha Murphy's disappearance as 'out of character'.
Police described Samantha Murphy's disappearance as 'out of character'.
Police have arrested a man in connection with the disappearance of missing Ballarat mother Samantha Murphy.
A 22-year-old Ballarat man was arrested Wednesday morning at his home by Missing Persons Squad detectives, Victoria Police said,
“He remains in custody, however no charges have been laid at this time,” police said.
Murphy disappeared four weeks ago after going for a run in the Canadian State Forest in Victoria, Australia, on February 4, with police describing her disappearance as “out of character”.
“Despite a significant investigation and extensive searches of the Canadian Forest area, no trace of the 51-year-old has been located,” police said.
Her disappearance last month became one of the largest missing persons investigations in Victoria.
Police stated earlier that there was no evidence the 51-year-old mother of three had left the area on her own accord and are doubtful that she was still alive.
“Unfortunately, given the time and the fact we have found no trace of her, we do have severe concerns and are very doubtful that she is still alive,” Victoria Police Detective Acting Superintendent Mark Hatt said.
“We are keeping an open mind, but believe the most likely scenario is that her disappearance involves one or more parties.
“Given the extensive and detailed search that has already been undertaken, and the fact no sign of Samantha or her personal belongings has been located, we have ruled out any type of medical incident.
“There is also nothing to indicate that Samantha left the area of her own accord.”
Police investigating the disappearance of missing mum Samantha Murphy will use mobile phone tower data to identify the movements of people in the area at the time.
The arrest comes days after police revealed they were to trawl through information from the phones of other people whose devices pinged off the same tower as Murphy’s phone.
Police have indicated that once they discern who was in the area at the time, they would then probe their backgrounds for any potential new leads.
A targeted search began in and around Mount Clear, only 5km away from where she was last seen, based on an area highlighted by intelligence derived from phone data.
Mount Clear is adjacent to the Canadian State Forest, an area Murphy was known to frequent on her runs.
Speaking on Australian radio station 3AW, veteran crime expert John Silverster said she’s unlikely to have disappeared, pointing at foul play.
“We know it’s not self-harm or a medical issue. Why? Because the area has been searched, and they’re very confident if someone has fallen down one way or another, they would have been found.
“So that leaves you with the suggestion of foul play and probably murder.”
It is not known who the 22-year-old arrested man is and whether he is known to either police or the Murphy family.
Locals have launched search parties in a bid to assist police in helping locate Murphy.
However, Silvester suggested someone among the search party could be operating with ill-intent to throw police off the scent that someone who knows Murphy or is an upstanding member of the community could be behind her disappearance.
“Police will also be considering that one of those searchers is the [alleged] killer in that they have inculcated themselves into that situation to be seen as part of the community, but also keeping an eye on what’s going on,” he explained.
He explained that police have likely ruled out that Murphy had any major secrets that the family didn’t know about.
The 51-year-old is well-known in the community, with the family owning a car repair business and Samantha being heavily involved in the local theatre scene.
Detectives are continuing to appeal for anyone who has CCTV or dashcam footage and is yet to speak to police to come forward.
