Australia Samantha Murphy, 51, last seen leaving her property to go for a run in the Canadian State Forest, Ballarat 100km NW of Melbourne, 4 Feb 2024 #7

[sleuther123]

Whenever a crime is committed, Bunnings should be the first port of call for LE!

100%. I can’t imagine working at one because I’d be suspicious of everyone!
I was in an aisle and overheard a guy in the next aisle asking for hydrochloric acid…to clean concrete (he added) and I practically ran out of there.

 

[SLouTh]

are LE still searching for Sam, or is it just volunteer searches?

There is no way they have given up …. They will use intelligence gathered, to target their searches …


This investigation is far from over," Chief Commissioner Patton said.

"We're going to be continuing to gather further evidence, taking further statements and investigations will continue at a very heavy pace."

Patrick Orren Stephenson named as Samantha Murphy's accused killer after suppression order ends

The man charged with murdering Victorian woman Samantha Murphy can be revealed as Patrick Orren Stephenson, after his lawyer dropped a bid to have the 22-year-old's name suppressed.

www.abc.net.au

IMO

 

[ZombieKittie]

There’s been a bit of talk about the bushfires around Ballarat after SM went missing might having something to do with her disposal and a reason why her body hasn’t been located.

It’s an absolute devastating thought to have but maybe that could be the case? I am not sure about if you can literally burn a body into nothing? I know there is cremation but Could a normal fire do that or does it need to be a specific temperature at a constant burn? my Knowledge of this subject is very minimal, maybe someone else has more knowledge on it?

I do apologise for the graphic nature but it’s something that’s gotta be considered. I know there’s been talk of pigs, and crocodiles being involved in body disposal, I guess when there is very limited facts to go on anything is possible.

I got you.

Spoiler: WARNING Talk of cremation and dead bodies

Cremating an average sized body takes about 1 to 2 hours of temps above 1000 degrees Celsius and will usually still leave recognisable bones. For reference after the black saturday fires as intense as they were most of the bodies found were still recognisable as human body. While a bush fire may burn above 1000 degrees it isn't a constant enough heat for long enough

IMO

 

[Whatson]

I got you.

Spoiler: WARNING Talk of cremation and dead bodies

Cremating an average sized body takes about 1 to 2 hours of temps above 1000 degrees Celsius and will usually still leave recognisable bones. For reference after the black saturday fires as intense as they were most of the bodies found were still recognisable as human body. While a bush fire may burn above 1000 degrees it isn't a constant enough heat for long enough

IMO

Same would apply for house fires I assume. Which would burn hotter for a lot longer than a fire tearing through bush land.

 

[Warshawski]

Purely speculation but could one of the local warrants be his gf’s parents nearby farm , they had been friends for some years , imagine he would have visited there often before the house sitting gig commenced .

Well certainly a possibility Dr S. .. tbh I think anything is a possibility at this stage.

I was of the impression originally that it was the gf’s parents house that they were ‘sitting’, but I think others have suggested otherwise. The term ‘house sitting’ usually means ‘rent free’. .. maybe someone needed a place looked after, and this was their first steps into ‘living together’. I did ask previously if anyone knew if gf was present when he was arrested, and I still wonder that.

 

[Angeline]

<modsnip:: Quoted post was removed due to no links to support>

Apple phones can be tracked for 24 hours after being turned off so long as you have the "find my phone" Feature enabled. Not sure what models, but I posted a video demonstrating the feature on the weekend.

How often do "pings" usually happen?

From what I recall, Samantha's phone last pinged at 5pm off the Buninyong tower.

The last ping prior to that was at 7am (10 hours earlier, according to this article.)

I wonder if the accused went somewhere so remote there was no phone reception, then returned at 5pm still with her phone.

 

[Kemug]

If indeed the alleged perp dissolved SM's body in acid (shudder), then I can't believe that was unplanned. He must have had things ready IMO. Perhaps we are only seeing the tip of a very big iceberg

 

[Warshawski]

Somehow this has turned into a talking point, when what I was saying (in response to a post) is that the police have not said that Sam was attacked by a person with advanced skills. That was a theory in the Under Investigation show.

And that the accused is not a telecomms tech, he is a rookie or apprentice electrician.

FWIW, the DM has stated that he graduated high school in 2019 and entered a trade. It may be that he started his apprenticeship in early 2020 - after graduating high school - and has just completed it in 2024, if he passed all modules.

Whichever way he has completed his 4 year apprenticeship, he is still a junior tradesperson with limited formal experience.

imo

Former schoolmate lifts the lid on Samantha Murphy's accused killer

Patrick Stephenson, 22, was this week charged with allegedly murdering Samantha Murphy on February 4 after she left her Ballarat home, in Victoria, for a morning run.

www.dailymail.co.uk

And it was an interesting talking point imo, also far less ghoulish than some others that have been thrown around

I was simply suggesting the option that he may be further into his experience as a qualified electrician than one might think, given the school based trade opportunities that exist across the higher schooling levels.

Head Start apprenticeships and traineeships

I also think he will have acquired telecom & data experience under his father’s guidance, but jmo.

Did police say the perp had ‘advanced skills’ ?? Don’t think I computed that & it seems a strange & loose ended statement - advanced skills in what ?
( avoiding arrest for 5 weeks & keeping mum about the location of SM body ?)

 

[Angeline]

Is it possible that the accused was so high/drunk/etc. that he simply doesn't know where the body is?

I personally think he's enraged about being caught and doesn't want to give the police what they want.

Also, giving up the location means admitting guilt. I think he likes having something over the police.

I think he's entitled and spoilt... and evil.

 

[Hestia's Fire]

Theres also been silence from Sissi, the lady jogger attacked a year prior. You'd think if he wasn't her perp, we would have heard so.

I keep thinking about this, too, and wondering if he was Sissy's attacker and that was his 'practice' before he worked up the nerve to carry out an even more horrific crime.

To that end, I went to look at Sissy's social media just now and found that she's made it all private, including her website. It was all public less than a week ago when I went to look at it last.

 

[FromGermany1]

I keep thinking about this, too, and wondering if he was Sissy's attacker and that was his 'practice' before he worked up the nerve to carry out an even more horrific crime.

To that end, I went to look at Sissy's social media just now and found that she's made it all private, including her website. It was all public less than a week ago when I went to look at it last.

It makes much sense, if there are similarities.

 

[Hestia's Fire]

It makes much sense, if there are similarities.

I've wondered if that might have something to do with his reluctance to reveal the location of Samantha's body. If her body shows evidence that she was attacked in the same way as Sissy, it would be a sure giveaway that he was the same attacker and it was surely premeditated.

 

[nhmemorymaker]

I keep thinking about this, too, and wondering if he was Sissy's attacker and that was his 'practice' before he worked up the nerve to carry out an even more horrific crime.

To that end, I went to look at Sissy's social media just now and found that she's made it all private, including her website. It was all public less than a week ago when I went to look at it last.

Sissy has admitted to having PTSD after her attack. I would think that all the rumblings over the announcements of PS being arrested, brought much back to her by way of her own feelings, and the pressures of other people in the social media world.

I actually have been trying to follow LE language to see if there are any possible connections to Sissy. In a way, I am hoping that to be the case.... moo.

https://www.news.com.au/national/victoria/news/sissy-austin-slams-police-over-samantha-murphy-disappearance/news-story/54c8f292e6ab39e7cb383f874e5cbb41

 

[Hestia's Fire]

Sissy has admitted to having PTSD after her attack. I would think that all the rumblings over the announcements of PS being arrested, brought much back to her by way of her own feelings, and the pressures of other people in the social media world.

I actually have been trying to follow LE language to see if there are any possible connections to Sissy. In a way, I am hoping that to be the case.... moo.

https://www.news.com.au/national/victoria/news/sissy-austin-slams-police-over-samantha-murphy-disappearance/news-story/54c8f292e6ab39e7cb383f874e5cbb41

Yes, I'm sure it's been extremely painful for her. The last post I saw from her was after PS was arrested and she posted that she's now seen enough to link the two events.

 

[Warshawski]

Obviously, his parents don't seem to have any sway over him at all. Nor his sisters. They appear to be normal decent people, people attached to their community, living in peace with their neighbors for many years, one would think they would be leaning on him a bit ,, or a lot, actually, to give Mrs. Murphy's family some relief, some kind of closure, of a sort , and return her body to them.

In Au law, and in Victorian law, keeping quiet about where the body is of a someone you killed is not the bargaining chip it might seem at first glance to be. It is a negative , in the overall makeup of the crimes , the additional crimes he is likely to be charged with, such as, for example, interfering with a corpse, if he moved her body to another location, which it seems he must have.. or/and some peculiar aspect of the method he used in the murder, all these things are yet to come down on Mr S. It is more likely that the VICPOL will be adding extra charges to those that already hang about his neck, not less because the body is still missing..

There seems, in respect of this long silence, a clear pointer to some hugely dysfunctional dynamic in this family that they have not been able to persuade him of his best interests, considering his situation. Of a long standing nature, or, on the other hand he might be particularly stubborn and stupid, and that is always a possibility.

I agree with your synopsis Trooper - it’s what I was trying to suggest earlier.

However, in this particular case & re the accused, I can understand that if he’s stayed quiet & given no indication of his involvement - or is strongly suggesting his innocence - he’s not about to cough up location details!

It would be ridiculous to think he’s going to say ‘here’s where the body is, but I had nothing to do with any of it’. … imo

 

[Bats]

I think, the accused has had some sort of connection to organised crime...drugs obviously.

MOO...He doesn't seem to be the type to hold back from telling police the facts.... except for a possibility that he's been tutored by organised crime. Normal people would probably spill their guts to police under duress but people "in the know" say nothing.....and that would be incredibly hard when there is pressure from family and friends etc...

Its quite possible that Samantha's body is over 50km from Ballarat with almost no chance of being identified...possibly never being found.....

It makes me wonder...what would the accused be doing now if he hadn't been caught... horrible to think about really.

 

[Angeline]

To that end, I went to look at Sissy's social media just now and found that she's made it all private, including her website. It was all public less than a week ago when I went to look at it last.

SBM. She might have been advised to by the police, so that it doesn't affect the trial.

 

[Warshawski]

Obviously, his parents don't seem to have any sway over him at all. Nor his sisters. They appear to be normal decent people, people attached to their community, living in peace with their neighbors for many years, one would think they would be leaning on him a bit ,, or a lot, actually, to give Mrs. Murphy's family some relief, some kind of closure, of a sort , and return her body to them.

In Au law, and in Victorian law, keeping quiet about where the body is of a someone you killed is not the bargaining chip it might seem at first glance to be. It is a negative , in the overall makeup of the crimes , the additional crimes he is likely to be charged with, such as, for example, interfering with a corpse, if he moved her body to another location, which it seems he must have.. or/and some peculiar aspect of the method he used in the murder, all these things are yet to come down on Mr S. It is more likely that the VICPOL will be adding extra charges to those that already hang about his neck, not less because the body is still missing..

There seems, in respect of this long silence, a clear pointer to some hugely dysfunctional dynamic in this family that they have not been able to persuade him of his best interests, considering his situation. Of a long standing nature, or, on the other hand he might be particularly stubborn and stupid, and that is always a possibility.

Whoops, meant to comment re his poor parents. If he’s incarcerated in remand, how much access would his parents have to him ( I’ve no experience in those matters)

He may even be refusing to see them - alternatively, they may be letting him deal with it since he’s no longer a child, maybe they’ve had enough.

It’s all such a big mystery, and it’s caused so much pain for so many people. So sad & so unnecessary.

 

[epictreasure]

For anyone who was wondering this is a map with most of the dams in the area between Elsworth St and Mt Clear.

Please disregard the lines as they are just my brain braining

Can you please tell me the details of each red point please. Streets? This is exactly the area I was drawn to but need to look and see if they match

 

[epictreasure]

Whoops, meant to comment re his poor parents. If he’s incarcerated in remand, how much access would his parents have to him ( I’ve no experience in those matters)

He may even be refusing to see them - alternatively, they may be letting him deal with it since he’s no longer a child, maybe they’ve had enough.

It’s all such a big mystery, and it’s caused so much pain for so many people. So sad & so unnecessary.

Maybe his silence is to avoid implicating others who may be closer to him than his family?