Growing fears Samantha Murphy's remains will never be found as detectives give ... trends now
EXCLUSIVE
The body of Samantha Murphy will have been abandoned in the Victorian bush for three months come Saturday without any trace of her ever having been found.
The beloved mother-of-three was last seen leaving her home on Eureka Street, Ballarat East, to go for a run in the Canadian State Forest on the morning of February 4.
Despite numerous searches, Victoria Police detectives appear no closer to finding her body despite having her alleged killer in custody.
Hope is fading in the hunt for Samantha Murphy's body
Police used a cadaver dog during the search for the body of Samantha Murphy in Enfield State Park in Ballarat on April 11
A Victoria Police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia the investigation remained 'very much active and ongoing'.
'We are continuing to do all we can to locate her,' the spokesperson said.
In March, detectives charged 22-year-old tradesman Patrick Orren Stephenson with the 51-year old's murder.
It is understood he has continued to maintain his right to silence while awaiting his next court appearance in September.
Detectives from Victoria Police's Missing Persons Unit have been in a race against time to find Ms Murphy's body.
In the three months since she vanished, the area around Ballarat has seen heatwaves, bushfires and heavy rain as search teams tried to retrace her steps.
Wild animals including foxes are also known to have large populations in the dense bushland in the forests surrounding Ballarat.
If left uncovered in the harsh bush, experts believe a body can quickly decompose, destroying important DNA evidence.
'The time taken for a body to decompose depends on climatic conditions, like temperature and moisture, as well as the accessibility to insects,' the Australian Museum stated.
'In summer, a human body in an exposed location can be reduced to bones alone in just nine days.'
Experts believe if Ms Murphy's body has been buried, or dumped down one of Ballarat's many mine shafts, detectives could still be able to extract important evidence.
'A body that is buried 1.2m under the ground retains most of its tissue for a year,' the museum stated.
