Desperate grandmother’s plea for answers in Jodus Murphy’s mysterious Seymour death
A man has been captured on CCTV footage withdrawing cash from Jodus Murphy’s bank account days before his body was found in Seymour — unveiling key details about the boy’s last movements.
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A man who raided the bank account of a teenager whose body was found by a river could hold crucial details about the boy’s last movements.
18-year-old Jodus Murphy died after disappearing from his Seaford home on May 12 last year.
His body was discovered a month later next to the Goulburn River in Seymour, 100km north of Melbourne.
Mystery has surrounded the circumstances of his death since, with Coroner John Olle last month issuing a rare public appeal for more witnesses to come forward.
Speaking for the first time since his death, Jodus’ grandmother Linda Anderson told the Herald Sun his family continued to suffer without answers, and hoped the fresh push for leads would help determine how the teen died.
“It is impossible for any of us to cope and move forward,” Ms Anderson said.
“Some of us are suffering with depression and feelings of guilt for not being there to protect him.
Jodus, who was medicated for ADHD, was believed to have spent the night of May 14 at the home of a woman and her teenage son, where he was given methamphetamines and xanax.
The next day, he was last seen alive when he approached a woman on Kennedy Court in Seymour, asking to use the Maps app on her phone.
On May 17, a young man was twice captured on CCTV withdrawing money from Jodus’ bank account at an ATM in Seymour.
On June 14, a passer-by found the teen’s body next to the river, dressed only in his underwear and some jewellery he was wearing when he left his mother’s home.
The Herald Sun understands the man seen accessing Jodus’ bank account has remained a key focus for investigators, who attracted criticism over what witnesses and Jodus’ loved ones described as a delay in following potential leads about his location.
Ms Anderson said: “We feel the police could have done much more. Right from the beginning they didn’t act on reported sightings or check bank accounts as requested.”
A Seymour woman who told police she saw Jodus twice before his death told the Herald Sun at the time she believed police had not coordinated search efforts or reported sightings of the teenager in time to find him alive.
“I just got the impression that they didn’t fully know who I was talking about or were across the Frankston police’s search for him … I was told they (investigators) would have to get information about him from them (Frankston) after he was found dead.”
Ms Anderson said she was convinced somebody had information that could provide a breakthrough in determining Jodus’ cause of death.
“We believe someone out there knows more. Hopefully, they will come forward and help with any closure for us.”
In the months after he died, police did not believe his death was suspicious.
Jodus’ personal belongings, such as the two small travel bags containing clothes, his passport, wallet and a distinctive water bottle fitted with a purifier he was known to carry often, have never been found.
Originally published as Desperate grandmother’s plea for answers in Jodus Murphy’s mysterious Seymour death
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