Why Samantha Murphy’s case is at a standstill

Samantha Murphy’s disappearance quickly became one of Australia’s high-profile missing persons cases – but the progress of the case has the nation frustrated.

As the anniversary of the disappearance of Samantha Murphy nears closer and closer – the Ballarat community are more desperate than ever for answers.

Last month, the accused killer of the mother-of-three – who left for an early morning jog on February 4 and failed to return – pleaded not guilty to the killing during a short court hearing.

Samantha Murphy and husband Michael Murphy. Source: Nine News

Ms Murphy vanished in Ballarat after leaving for a morning jog on February 4. Picture: Supplied

Patrick Orren Stephenson, 23, was arrested a month after her disappearance, with his case set to return on February 18 – more than a year after Ms Murphy vanished without a trace.

The community is still at a loss as to how the young Aussie Rules player came to be charged over the murder of the 51-year-old and is desperate to know what evidence led to his arrest.

Patrick Orren Stephenson, 23, was charged over the murder of Ms Murphy. Picture: Supplied/Facebook

Police have still not revealed what led to the arrest of the young man. Picture: Supplied

In March, following Mr Stephenson’s arrest, Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton remained tight-lipped about how the accused man was identified but said the arrest came after a “painstaking and methodical investigation”.

“I’m not going to identify what has specifically led us to this man other than to say it has come about from painstaking detective work with great assistance from the public,” he said.

The community are also desperate to find Ms Murphy’s body.

So what has happened to the case – and why is it taking so long for the public to get answers?

The mobile phone

Four months after Ms Murphy’s disappearance – and three months after Mr Stephenson’s arrest – Ms Murphy’s phone was finally found. It was discovered in the Enfield State Forest, about a 15-minute drive from Buninyong, was buried in mud on the edge of a dam in May.

The phone was expected to be totalled.

However, it was in complete working order with no damage.

The condition raised questions about whether the phone had been recently dumped – and threw a spanner into the timeline police were originally working to.

The tight-knit community

Another reason police have kept their cards close to their chest is due to the small-town dynamics involved in the case.

With tension and paranoia at an all-time high in Ballarat following Ms Murphy’s disappearance, police are simply eager to avoid putting fuel to the fire.

Criminology expert Tim Watson-Munro, who has worked on a number of small town cold cases, said fact plays a huge part in the way police run their investigations.
“In small communities, the anxiety is greater. They’re living in a small town, and [there could be] a person who hasn’t been caught, living among us.”

“ Because it’s in a smaller community … it hits the community harder than in large cities where there’s a greater potential for anonymity,  it’s more real and intense for them.

 ”In larger cities, people have an opportunity to kind of desensitise themselves to what’s happening.”

The body of Ms Murphy still hasn’t been found. Picture: Facebook

The evidence

During one of Mr Stephenson’s hearings in August, the court heard how police were having to sift through an “unprecedented” amount of evidence, including extensive CCTV footage to prepare their case.

With the added pressure put on police by the community to get a conviction, police are eager to take their time to get things right, Mr Watson-Munro said.

“The time frame in the greater scheme of things isn’t that great,” he said.

“It would seem that they’re just being meticulous to detail.”

The evidence is also made logistically tricky due to the location Ms Murphy went missing, with the area filled with forests and mine shafts.

“This is a person who has disappeared in rural Victoria,” Mr Watson-Munro said.

“There are greater opportunities to hide and dispose of the body. I’m not surprised that they haven’t had a breakthrough yet.”

A court sketch of Patrick Orren Stephenson. Picture: NewsWire/ Paul Tyquin

In a statement to news.com.au, Victoria Police said the search was still active.

“There is no update on this matter and the investigation remains ongoing,” they said.

“Since February, police have regularly undertaken a range of inquiries and small-scale searches as part of the current investigation.”

Originally published as Why Samantha Murphy’s case is at a standstill