It has been a month since Samantha Murphy went missing

Samantha Murphy disappeared on February 4 and a grim milestone has been reached as the search goes on.

“Where is Samantha Murphy?”

It has been a month since she went missing, and there is still no answer to that simple question.

Murphy, 51, is a mum of three and hasn’t been seen since she went after going for a morning run at 7am in the Woowookarung Regional Park in East Ballarat.

Her disappearance has gripped the nation, and her family is desperate for her to be found, but 29 days later, there are more theories than answers.

While Ms Murphy’s disappearance remains a mystery, it is undeniable that she’s missed by her community and loved ones.

Five days after her disappearance, her eldest daughter tearfully asked people to keep looking for her mum.

“I know she’s out there somewhere, so if you could please continue to search for her and give us something to work with, we’d really appreciate it. Mum, we love you so much, and we miss you … please come home soon,” she said.

Samantha’s husband Mick Murphy and daughter Jess Murphy, speak to media outside Ballarat West Police Station. Picture: NCA Newswire / Nicki Connolly

Everyone’s a Suspect

On February 24, Detective Acting Superintendent Mark Hatt said that “everyone” in her personal life was now a “person of interest.”

The detective gave an update on the ongoing case and said they were still looking for her phone and whether she had been removed from the area where she had gone missing.

“We have several people that we are speaking to, and I can say the family have been absolutely fantastic in co-operating with police,” he said.

Detective Halt’s sentiments echoed Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton’s thoughts earlier in the month.

“We keep saying ‘it’s not suspicious’, but when someone’s been missing for this period, we have no trace, well, clearly there must be some suspicions there,” he said.

No arrests or charges have been laid.

Samanthy Murphy has been missing for a month.

Mark Hatt said “everyone” in her personal life is a person of interest. Picture: Brendan Beckett

Did she fall down a mine shaft?

A growing theory about Ms Murphy’s disappearance is that she may have fallen into an abandoned mine shaft.

Raymond Shaw, the founder of the Victorian Historical Mine Shaft Chasers, suggested the idea in mid-February and raised concerns police hadn’t properly explored the possibility.

According to the ABC, Mr Shaw has said he has explored more than 1000 mines and he even came to Ballarat alongside his wife to check for himself.

“There wasn’t any disturbance on the surface from emergency services looking for any items that belonged to the missing person in question,” he told the Daily Mail.

“There was no signs of any bushes being moved”.

No one has been able to find her phone either. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Crosling

She disappeared on purpose?

The other growing theory is that Ms Murphy decided to disappear on purpose but the idea lacks motive.

Just because there’s been no strong leads into her disappearance that doesn’t mean she orchestrated it.

Detective Matt Halt said the fact they couldn’t find her wasn’t a good sign for her wellbeing.

“Unfortunately, given the time and the fact we’ve found no trace of her, we do have severe concerns and are very doubtful that she’s still alive,” he said

He also said they haven’t found solid evidence to explain why the loving mother would want to disappear.

“There is also nothing to indicate that Samantha left the area of her own accord,” he pointed out.

Originally published as It has been a month since Samantha Murphy went missing