Sunday February 4, 7 a.m.: Samantha Murphy, mother of three, is last seen leaving her home on Eureka Street in Ballarat East and running away.
7:16 a.m.: She is captured on a neighbor’s surveillance video wearing a brown tank top and black mid-length leggings.
11am: Mrs. Murphy doesn’t show up to a planned brunch with her family. She is reported missing to the police.
Monday February 5: Victoria Police are launching a public appeal to find Ms Murphy. A search area was established just outside the suburb of Buninyong, about 14km from where Ms Murphy was last seen, as well as close to her home. Police revealed Ms Murphy’s mobile phone rang in Buninyong
Tuesday February 6: Ms Murphy’s husband Mick told media he was “not too bad in the circumstances”. He was pictured speaking with police as the desperate search continued. The search extended to more than 100 specialist police officers, SES crews and teams from Forest Fire Management Australia and Parks Victoria.
Wednesday February 8, 12:30 p.m.: A search team found possible evidence near walking trail in Woowookarung Regional Park
1:45 p.m.: Mick Murphy appears on the cordoned off stage of Woowookarung Regional Park and appeared visibly stunned when he was turned away by the police. Police said the items found in the bush were unrelated to where she was.
Police then released what they initially believed to be surveillance video of Ms. Murphy leaving her property and heading northeast toward Yankee Flat Road, near the intersection of Warrenheip Road.
Thursday afternoon February 8: A rider came forward to reveal he was the person seen in CCTV footage, ruling out a key line of inquiry.
Friday February 9: Victoria Police are stepping up their efforts with the arrival of officers from the missing persons unit.
Saturday February 10: Investigators are scaling back searches and say a full-scale search will only resume if new information emerges.
Sunday February 11: As police slow down the search, residents continue their own search by searching the area in small groups.
Monday February 12: Cin Hobbs, administrator of the Facebook group “Find Samantha Murphy” – which amassed thousands of members in a matter of days – announced that she was deleting the group because it “had served its purpose”.
Tuesday February 13: Daily Mail Australia reveals Ms Murphy’s beloved dog Ruby was missing.
Wednesday February 14: Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton confirms detectives are treating Ms Murphy’s disappearance as suspicious.
Detectives from Victoria Police’s missing persons unit spend an hour at the Murphy family property.
It is revealed that Ruby has died.
Friday February 16: Ms Murphy’s uncle and aunt, Allan and Janice Robson, tell Daily Mail Australia they believe their niece was the victim of foul play.
Ms Robson speculates that the mother was targeted by a deranged stalker, saying: “I would say someone would have been watching her. I can’t think it would be anything else.
Monday February 19: Mick Murphy makes a public appeal, saying: “We want Sam to come home, please.”
He says his family is “doing the best they can under the circumstances.”
Thursday February 22: Dozens of detectives from specialized units are assigned to the case.
Friday February 23: Police admit “one or more parties” are most likely behind his disappearance as the hunt moves to a new location in Mount Clear, based on new analysis of phone data. Detectives also reveal that Samantha Murphy’s husband, Mick, and “all of her relatives” have been named as persons of interest.
Wednesday February 28: Inland Motor Body Works, a repair business in Ballarat owned by Ms Murphy and her husband, becomes the focus of the investigation, amid speculation that outlaw motorcycle gangs were among the customers.
Monday March 4: Investigators begin examining cell tower data to identify the movements of people in the area where Ms. Murphy disappeared.
6:00 a.m. Wednesday March 6: A 22-year-old man is arrested at a house in Scotsburn in Ballarat in connection with Ms Murphy’s disappearance.
Thursday March 7: The man is charged with one count of murder and was expected to appear in court later this afternoon.
Ms Murphy is still missing and the search for her body continues.
Wednesday March 20: Police launch new searches in Buninyong Bushland Reserve, 10km from initial search efforts. It’s been 45 days since Mrs. Murphy disappeared
Police called off the search mid-afternoon. They hope to continue the search over the coming weeks.