Bluewater murder: Mother’s body found by teens in Townsville bushland

The body of a mother-of-four has been found by a group of teenagers on quad bikes in rural bushland.

A mother of four has been identified as the victim of a violent attack after her body was found in bushland in Queensland.

The 44-year-old woman, who is yet to be formally identified by police, was found by a group of teenagers who were riding quad bikes on Sandy track in Bluewater near Townsville around 5pm Saturday.

Detective Inspector Jason Shepherd said the teens were “obviously quite shaken up” following the discovery on Jaloonda road.

“We took statements last night and obviously, they were quite shaken up by it,” he said

“Although I can’t elaborate on the nature of the injuries or the cause of death at this stage, it’s very obvious that it’s a suspicious death,”

Acting Inspector Jason Shepherd said authorities are treating it as a homicide investigation. Picture: Leighton Smith

Police allege the mother, who has four children aged between 14 and 24, was found after less than a day, with authorities treating it as a homicide investigation.

“At this stage, we believe the body had been (left) on the track at some point in the previous 24 hours,” Detective Inspector Shepherd said.

Detective Shepherd said investigations led police to believe the woman died at the location, with early indications suggesting she knew her attacker.

“This doesn’t appear to be a random attack on a stranger. They probably went to that location together.” he said.

Although police said they are yet to find a murder weapon, they believe one had been used.

Police said the alleged offender did not make an effort to conceal the body, making it easy for anyone along the track to see her.

“It is a small fishing village there, it is quite isolated, but there are vehicles that move up and down that road, so it’s possible there are witnesses,” Detective Shepherd said.

Investigations are ongoing. Picture: Leighton Smith

Authorities are trying to track down the woman’s movements over the past couple of weeks as they plan to carry out an autopsy.

“I can’t detail a cause of death, but we do have an idea of how it may have occurred, an autopsy will be carried out early in the week.” Detective Shepherd said

Investigations are ongoing.

Originally published as Bluewater murder: Mother’s body found by teens in Townsville bushland