Australia Samantha Murphy, 51, last seen leaving her property to go for a run in the Canadian State Forest, Ballarat, 4 Feb 2024 *Arrest* #11

DNA Solves
DNA Solves
DNA Solves

New Posts

Dotta said:
Re the first part
(deal with others/ meet-up/somebody else)

I think Police nabbed the accused by his phone signal in the area.
So,
why has nobody else been charged?
Didn't they bring phones with them?

The second scenario involving SA sounds very probable, unfortunately :(

JMO
Click to expand...
We don't know what the police are doing,.
These are just theories, as we don't know now..
Whether they're watching others
and waiting for the accused to spill the beans at his trial, when he realises he's gone and roll over
He could be instructed under protection for his and his families safety to keep his mouth shut until then, there could be threats made
He could agree to plead to the charges of manslaughter and say someone else was standing over me, with a gun against my head, to kill her ?
We don't know what the CCTV footage contains and whether other people and voices are shown as well, including other evidence, surveillance, witnesses and all the mobile intel.
We don't know if the accused is connected with the phone or the dam yet, and unless they can do so, it can be contended that someone else might be involved.
I just find it very hard to believe that the whole alleged murder scenario was solely done by the accused
 
Scooby-Doo said:
I just find it very hard to believe that the whole alleged murder scenario was solely done by the accused
Click to expand...

I don't know why. If Greg Lynn can kill two people, transport them elsewhere, conceal their bodies so well that the police had to be led to the area in order to find what was left of their remains, stay off the police radar for months, I don't know why PS couldn't have done similar with one victim.

imo
 
SouthAussie said:
I don't know why. If Greg Lynn can kill two people, transport them elsewhere, conceal their bodies so well that the police had to be led to the area in order to find what was left of their remains, stay off the police radar for months, I don't know why PS couldn't have done similar with one victim.

imo
Click to expand...
accused is 6"6" and in the so called prime of his life. Just does not seem to be any motive. IMO.
 
There was a news article that stated that PS would have been able to see Samantha do her daily run, from one of the windows in his house. I’m not sure whether it was the rented house or his parents house. Maybe he knew the time she did her running? And targeted her that fateful day? Police have stated it was a targeted attack.

I am trying to find that article, but I am having trouble locating it now.

IMHO
 
SouthAussie said:
I don't know why. If Greg Lynn can kill two people, transport them elsewhere, conceal their bodies so well that the police had to be led to the area in order to find what was left of their remains, stay off the police radar for months, I don't know why PS couldn't have done similar with one victim.

imo
Click to expand...
This is a 22 year old kid
Who has been meticulous in his approach, nothing has been found ( but her phone later on)
The police still can not find Samantha

If the accused still had Samantha with him, the smart thing would be to disable the phone and dispose of it with her body at the same time. Stopping and chucking it into a random dam only increases the chances of getting caught.

But why throw the phone at all? If he is on the way to disposing of the body, why risk a stop and not just dispose of the phone with the body? If he is on the way back, and presumably just realised he still had the phone, why choose that location when he could easily destroy and hide the phone in a bin, mine shaft back in town or completely destroy it ?
As I said before, we don't know how long the phone has been in the dam and If the police can link the accused's phone to that dam as well.

Whoever put the phone in the dam clearly wanted to dispose of the whole contents of the folder

Did Samantha really take the phone with her on the run? Or just her watch?

On a Sunday morning, there would be regular walkers along all those trails. Hiding a body takes some time and effort. If she was not immediately removed from the area where the alleged incident took place, then a passer-by would almost certainly have seen something. And it would have been far too risky to hide her in a temporary location and return to the scene of the crime later the same day, as there were likely still searchers in the area, people were heightened awareness that a woman was missing in the Mt Clear Forest.

The other factor is that there is no direct evidence that we know of linking drug use or abuse to Samantha's disappearance, and my thoughts are, it is unlikely that a drug-crazed offender could and would have successfully concealed the body in such a short time without detection.

To be able to carry out such an organised crime without detection, including hiding a body from numerous searchers and police, suggests that if he is in fact guilty, then he was more than likely coherent at the time and not severely drug-affected.

There is a lot to this 'that doesn't sit well with me'

Things can change, too, as more evidence is collected.
 
Marg944 said:
Police have stated it was a targeted attack.
Click to expand...
I do not recall they ever said that, nor do I believe they would have, they have said that the suspect and Samantha were not known to each other.

Of course, veritable mountains of media/social media speculation has favoured a targeted attack, especially when most people/media were absolutely convinced, dead certain the husband had done it.

JMO
 
Cedars said:
I do not recall they ever said that, nor do I believe they would have, they have said that the suspect and Samantha were not known to each other.

Of course, veritable mountains of media/social media speculation has favoured a targeted attack, especially when most people/media were absolutely convinced, dead certain the husband had done it.

JMO
Click to expand...
one of many reports that may jog your memory...

www.abc.net.au

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 www.abc.net.au

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

''''On Thursday, Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton said police would allege Ms Murphy died in a "deliberate attack" in the Ballarat suburb of Mount Clear.''''
 
Trooper said:
one of many reports that may jog your memory...


''''On Thursday, Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton said police would allege Ms Murphy died in a "deliberate attack" in the Ballarat suburb of Mount Clear.''''
Click to expand...
Sorry but 'deliberate attack' doesn't mean 'targeted attack', not at all.

Deliberate attack means he intended to kill his victim, who could just be a random person he encountered. Targeted attack would mean he intended to kill one particular person, whom he selected ahead of time.

It's nice for Australians that you've never had the very numerous Ted Bundy types that have unfortunately infested North America.

JMO
 
SouthAussie said:
Even if they had "crossed paths", why would PS kill Sam? It seems evident that they had no traceable association. Nothing that shows up in any kind of records anywhere. Nowhere that it is evident that they "met".

Sam was a wife, a mother, a daughter, a friend, who appeared to live a life very much on the surface. Working, running, volunteering at school, having dinner with friends, always answering her phone to whoever called.


"Samantha Murphy functioned like "clockwork" ...... "

www.9news.com.au

'Life was really good, and then this': Samantha Murphy's husband speaks

www.9news.com.au www.9news.com.au
Click to expand...
Stranger homicide is extremely rare. The link below analyses various aspects of this fact from a forensic and psychological perspective.

The Truth About Stranger Homicide, and Who's Really at Risk

In response to your question SouthAussie - "Why would PS kill Sam?", AFAIK the motive for the murder of Samantha is officially unknown. The fact remains however, that stranger homicide is extremely rare.

IMO, people don't need to have phone or email contact with someone to "know" them, particularly in regional areas, although this applies in major cities also IMO.
IMO most people on this site may know numerous people, but on paper there would be no trace of them knowing each other at all.

While living in an Australian capital city, I often bumped into people who I 'knew,' in the course of undertaking my daily errands, particularly whilst shopping at the local supermarket/newsagency. I did not necessarily know their names and vice versa but frequently, pleasantries had been previously exchanged, and would be on other occasions, whilst waiting to be attended to.

JMO
 
jjleroche said:
Stranger homicide is extremely rare. The link below analyses various aspects of this fact from a forensic and psychological perspective.
Click to expand...

I posted the link before. The Australian Govt annual statistics. A little more than 13% of cleared female homicides each year. A few years it was 15%. IIRC, one year it was 17%. There are categories that are rare ... like a child killing a female parent.

Murder by a stranger is not so rare. Just in a minority.

There is nothing to say that Sam's death isn't in that particular minority.

imo

Here is my previous link ... https://www.aic.gov.au/sites/default/files/2024-06/sr46_homicide_in_australia_2022-23_v3.pdf
 
Last edited:
Marg944 said:
There was a news article that stated that PS would have been able to see Samantha do her daily run, from one of the windows in his house. I’m not sure whether it was the rented house or his parents house. Maybe he knew the time she did her running? And targeted her that fateful day? Police have stated it was a targeted attack.

I am trying to find that article, but I am having trouble locating it now.

IMHO
Click to expand...

I haven't read that before, but I took a little look on Google maps.

This is his parent's home (red dot) in relation to the telecomms tower on Boak Road (circled - presumably the tower was along part of Sam's run that day).

a.jpg

And this is the road where PS and his girlfriend were house-sitting, and where he was arrested (red dot at bottom right) in relation to the telecomms tower on Boak Road (circled at top left)

b.jpg

Link

Doesn't seem likely from those two places anyway. Unless they are speaking of some other place ... like a mate's place? imo
One of these days we will get more official information, so things are a bit clearer. I think in the vacuum of information, all kinds of theories are arising (understandably, due to this being a high profile case).
 
Last edited:
jjleroche said:
Stranger homicide is extremely rare. The link below analyses various aspects of this fact from a forensic and psychological perspective.

The Truth About Stranger Homicide, and Who's Really at Risk

In response to your question SouthAussie - "Why would PS kill Sam?", AFAIK the motive for the murder of Samantha is officially unknown. The fact remains however, that stranger homicide is extremely rare.

IMO, people don't need to have phone or email contact with someone to "know" them, particularly in regional areas, although this applies in major cities also IMO.
IMO most people on this site may know numerous people, but on paper there would be no trace of them knowing each other at all.

While living in an Australian capital city, I often bumped into people who I 'knew,' in the course of undertaking my daily errands, particularly whilst shopping at the local supermarket/newsagency. I did not necessarily know their names and vice versa but frequently, pleasantries had been previously exchanged, and would be on other occasions, whilst waiting to be attended to.

JMO
Click to expand...

Attacks on lone female joggers/runners/walkers
in secluded lanes/paths in parks/forests/woods/
dark/deserted streets, etc.
are usually opportunistic/random.

"Wrong place at wrong time" for the victims :(

Rachel Morin
Eliza Fletcher
Ashling Murphy
Sabina Nessa
Zara Aleena
Julia James
Maria Rawlings
Mollie Tibbets
Sarah Everard
Libby Squire
Kendra Hanks

and many many others :(

were attacked and killed by STRANGERS,
lurking in the shadows and ready to pounce when
OPPORTUNITY arises.

All the victims I mentioned have threads on WS.
RIP to them all.

JMO
 
Last edited:
I also hope all of the victims which you have noted above rest in peace. Femicide and any other "....cide" are evil beyond belief IMO.

I have simply responded in a respectful manner to remarks which were contained in responses to my posts, and as far as I am aware, I am permitted to do so, as is every other Websleuther, as long as TOS are not contravened. That after all is part of the purpose of this site.

To be clear, I have in no way intended to diminish the suffering of any of the victims and their loved ones which you have
named, whether they were murdered by strangers or by someone whom they knew.

Nevertheless experts appear to agree that it is quite rare for someone to be murdered by someone who they do not know.
I provided a link quoting the view of Coral Dando PhD who believes that stranger homicide is quite rare. She provided an in-depth forensic and psychological analysis supporting her view. (I really don't think she made it up).

For the record, I am not an expert in this field, which is why I quoted someone who is.
 
Just wanted to share a thought: I think his girlfriend was the one who realised something wasn’t right and phoned the police. I’ve thought it ever since the Daily Mail pictures of her tending to her horses. She looked almost relieved, as if a weight had been lifted
 
callmehenry said:
Just wanted to share a thought: I think his girlfriend was the one who realised something wasn’t right and phoned the police. I’ve thought it ever since the Daily Mail pictures of her tending to her horses. She looked almost relieved, as if a weight had been lifted
Click to expand...
Unfortunately, there hasn't been any proof on that, it could also be the opposite
 
callmehenry said:
Just wanted to share a thought: I think his girlfriend was the one who realised something wasn’t right and phoned the police. I’ve thought it ever since the Daily Mail pictures of her tending to her horses. She looked almost relieved, as if a weight had been lifted
Click to expand...

The HS reported that it had been suggested that some CCTV put PS on the police radar.

But I can see that, if PS sustained fingernail scratches from physically attacking Sam, his girlfriend may have been suspicious. Especially if he didn't come home that night/morning. And something like fingernail scratches may have led the police to believe that he deliberately attacked Sam.
If the police privately interviewed her, after seeing that CCTV, she may have revealed her suspicions.

imo


a.jpg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

DNASolves

Who is DeKalb County John Doe (2022)?

Members online

... and 81 more.
Total: 2,345 (members: 82, guests: 2,263)

Online statistics

Members online
82
Guests online
2,263
Total visitors
2,345
Totals may include hidden visitors.

Forum statistics

Threads
602,094
Messages
18,134,633
Members
231,231
Latest member
timbo1966
Back
Top