Alleged killer of Samantha Murphy hit with fresh charges over as fears grow her remains may never be found

Samantha Murphy’s accused killer has been hit with new charges in connection with an alleged drug and alcohol-fuelled bender last year.

Patrick Orren Stephenson, 22, who has been charged with Ms Murphy’s murder, has been charged with drink-driving after allegedly crashing a motorbike into a tree on the night of October 1 after the AFL grand final.

He is also charged with reckless driving.

Mrs Murphy, a beloved mother of three, was last seen leaving her home in Eureka Street, Ballarat East, to go for a run in the Canadian State Forest, 125 kilometers west of Melbourne, on the morning of February 4 .

The 51-year-old went for a 14km run at nearby Woowookarung Regional Park around 7am that morning and hasn’t been back since.

Detectives caccused Stephenson of the murder in March after he was arrested in the Ballarat suburb of Mount Clear – about 5km from Ms Murphy’s home.

He has since been charged three times after allegedly crashing his motorcycle into a tree last year Herald Sun reported.

No other vehicle was involved.

A friend told the newspaper the crash is believed to have occurred after Stephenson attended an AFL grand final celebration.

The celebrations reportedly started around lunchtime on October 1 and were said to have continued well into the night at a bar in Ballarat.

Police attended the scene of the accident and administered an alcohol breath test, but Stephenson is said to have failed it.

He was taken to Ballarat Police Station where he then allegedly failed a drug test.

Daily Mail Australia is not suggesting Stephenson has been involved in any wrongdoing, only that charges have been laid.

He has not yet entered a plea to the new charges.

Victoria Police would not confirm details of the new charges against Stephenson when contacted by Daily Mail Australia for comment on Thursday evening.

The latest twist comes as police continue to search for Ms Murphy’s body, which was left in the Victorian bush for three months on Saturday without any trace of her ever found.

Despite numerous searches, Victoria Police detectives appear to be no closer to finding her body despite taking her alleged killer into custody.

A Victoria Police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia this week that the investigation remained “very active and ongoing”.

“We are doing everything we can to locate her,” the spokesperson said.

It is understood Stephenson has continued to maintain his right to remain silent pending his next court appearance in September.

Detectives from Victoria Police’s Missing Persons Unit are in a race against time to find Ms Murphy’s body.

In the three months since her disappearance, the Ballarat area has experienced heatwaves, bushfires and heavy rain as search teams tried to retrace her steps.

Wildlife, including foxes, are also known to have large populations in the dense bushland in the forests surrounding Ballarat.

If the body is left uncovered in the rugged wilderness, experts believe a body can decompose quickly, destroying important DNA evidence.

“The time it takes for a body to decompose depends on climatic conditions, such as temperature and moisture, and on its accessibility to insects,” the Australian Museum said.

“In summer, a human body can be reduced to bones alone in just nine days in an exposed area.”

Experts believe if Ms Murphy’s body is buried or dumped down one of Ballarat’s many mine shafts, detectives could still collect important evidence.

“A body buried 4 feet (1.2 meters) underground retains most of its tissue for a year,” the museum said.

While insects can decimate a body, whether buried or uncovered, wildlife also poses a real threat in the area where Ms. Murphy went missing.

Last month, police bSpecialist cadaver dogs from New South Wales have searched the Victorian bush in multiple locations in dense undergrowth stretching across a vast area of ​​countryside.

Teams of officers concentrated their search at Enfield State Park, 30 kilometers south of Ballarat, but another search team was also working 25 kilometers away in dense bush in the Durham Lead Nature Conservation Reserve.

The nature reserve is just south of Buninyong, where Ms Murphy’s phone was last detected by mobile phone masts at 5pm on the day she disappeared.

Murphy’s long-suffering husband Mick Murphy recently told Nine News he had not stopped looking for her.

“That particular day I was outside and thought she was going to come out into the street soon,” he said.

“Then she didn’t.”

Mr. Murphy is still ssearches daily, either by driving through the city or by walking for two hours through a pine plantation.

‘Sometimes I go for a drive and it might not be that special of a place, or I go for a two-hour walk. It varies every day,” he said.

‘It’s very good for my mind and if I were sitting at home I wouldn’t be doing myself any favors with it.’

Missing Persons Unit Detective Mark Hatt has previously stated that police would never give up searching for Ms Murphy.

“I want to reassure people in the Ballarat community that police remain focused on doing everything we can to return Samantha to her family,” he said last month.

Stephenson, the son of ex-Geelong and Richmond AFL player Orren Stephenson, will return to court for a mention on August 8.

Anyone with any information about Mrs. Murphy’s disappearance is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.