‘Scared the hell out of us’: fears rise in search for missing mum Samantha Murphy search

A couple has told of two disturbing encounters with a dishevelled man in bushland in Ballarat, where police have been searching for Samantha Murphy.

A friend gives Michael Murphy his support at Buninyong Police Station. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Ian Wilson

A couple has told of two disturbing encounters with a dishevelled man in bushland in Ballarat, where police have been searching for Samantha Murphy, who vanished after setting off for a jog on Sunday.

The couple’s account of being twice spooked by the man came as a woman who was violently assaulted while running through nearby bushland said it was not unreasonable for local women to be concerned about their safety.

Missing persons detectives with significant experience in complex bushland searches took over investigations from local police on Friday.

The search for Samantha Murphy continues. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Ian Wilson

Victoria Police said there was no evidence of “anything sinister”, but the search had been hampered by rugged terrain, a lack of CCTV footage and the area’s remoteness.

Ms Murphy’s family this week issued a heartfelt appeal for public help to find her.

Among those to come forward to police are Rebecca Agheli and her boyfriend, Michael Churchill, who say they were visiting Ballarat to go gold prospecting when a man twice “came out of nowhere” last Thursday.

He was wearing pants torn in the crotch area, exposing his underwear, and was muttering to himself, the pair say.

Ms Agheli posted about her experience on Facebook on Friday.

She told The Weekend Australian she turned to social media in desperation after becoming concerned police weren’t taking their report seriously.

“I went to Facebook just to be heard,” she said. “Maybe he’s harmless. I don’t want to point fingers. I’m just saying this is what I experienced and what I saw.”

Ms Agheli, from Melbourne’s Southbank, and Mr Churchill, from Rye on the Mornington Peninsula, drove to Ballarat in a rent­ed motorhome. They pulled over at a random spot near the Ballarat Gold Mine, and Ms Agheli waited in the motorhome while Mr Churchill went to test their rented metal detectors.

He came running back, saying “some weird guy” had popped up in the bush, she said.

It was about 5km from Ms Murphy’s home.

“As we pulled out … (the man) came out of the bush. (Michael) was like ‘That’s the guy, that’s the guy’.”

They drove to another bushland area on Brittain St and started using their metal detecting equipment again. “I walked 300m away. I was in my own world … and I see this guy pop out of the bush again,” Ms Agheli said.

“He took out his hands from his pockets and put both his wrists behind his back and started walking towards me.

“As soon as he saw my partner, he quickly shifted his direction and started walking to the bush.”

The man walked away mumbling, then stopped and stared at the couple before disappearing out of view.

“My partner said ‘Pick up your stuff, let’s go’.

“What really is alarming is that Michael was more worried than I was, and Michael is a big boy and never gets worried. (The man) came out of nowhere, which scared the hell out of us.”

The couple spent two nights in their motorhome in the Woowookarung Regional Park.

On Saturday morning, they saw a woman running through the park. Ms Agheli said she believed the woman may have been Ms Murphy. She noticed the woman’s Apple Watch, having bought two for herself and her partner for Christmas.

The search for Samantha Murphy had been hampered by rugged terrain, a lack of CCTV footage and the area’s remoteness. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Ian Wilson

Ms Murphy, 51, vanished after leaving her Eureka St property about 7am on Sunday to go­ ­jogging at the Woowookarung Regional Park.

Mr Churchill corroborated Ms Agheli’s account: “I remember the whole weekend vividly. Whether it’s anything at all, I’m not sure.”

He said the first sighting of the man was in an area strewn with rubbish. “All of a sudden there’s this guy walking towards me – a real creepy looking guy,” he said.

The second time he saw the man, “I noticed what he was wearing a bit more, and his pants were all ripped around his genitalia.

“You could clearly see he was wearing white, dirty underwear. And just mumbling to himself.”

SES crews during a large-scale search in Buninyong for missing Ballarat East woman Samantha Murphy, who has been missing since early Sunday morning. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Ian Wilson

The man was in his late 40s or early 50s, Mr Churchill added. “This guy was definitely out of the ordinary. I’m a pretty decent sized guy and I can more than handle myself, and it was enough for me to grab my partner and say ‘Let’s get the f..k out of here. Let’s go’.

“If this lady hadn’t gone missing, God bless her soul, I would probably have never ever thought about this again.

“The fact that she has – I rang the police yesterday morning, as soon as I got wind that this lady was still missing and it was getting serious. The bloke that answered the phone told me there’s a lot of people that match that description in this area.

“If that was my mum, I wouldn’t want the person answering the phone saying what he said to me.”

A Victoria Police spokeswoman said: “We won’t be providing a running commentary on intelligence received or items found in the search unless they are of interest and we are seeking media ­assistance.”

Police are urging people with information to contact Crime Stoppers to avoid Ballarat investigators being swamped by tips.

They say every report is passed on and then assessed.

Detective acting superintendent Mark Hatt, left, and Inspector Bob Heaney hold a press conference. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Ian Wilson

Detective Acting Superintendent Mark Hatt said on Friday: “We have not identified any suspicious or sinister circumstances.”

Former Greens Senate candidate Sissy Austin, who was brutally bashed while out running in February last year, said women remained concerned.

Ms Austin’s male attacker knocked her unconscious with a rock tied to a stick in Lal Lal state forest, about 20km from Ms Murphy’s home. Her assailant has never been found.

“I don’t think the police took it as seriously as they should have,” she told The Weekend Australian.

“It’s definitely always in the back of my mind, knowing that the person that attacked me is still out there.

“I’m not the only woman that’s experienced male violence. By the disappearance of Sam, I don’t think that it’s unreasonable for women in our community to feel that her disappearance is linked to male violence.”

She added that the “female running community deserves to be acknowledged … Our anxieties, our fears, deserve to be acknowledged by Ballarat police.”