A body, believed to be that of missing teenager Pheobe Bishop, has been found near where she was last sighted, hours after her two roomates faced court on murder charges.
Police were searching an area close to Good Night Scrub National Park, near Gin Gin, in Queensland, this afternoon when they found human remains at 2:30pm.
The remains are yet to be formally identified but investigators are talking to the family of the missing 17-year-old.
A crime scene has been established at the scene and forensic examinations are ongoing.
James Wood, 34, and Tanika Bromley, 33, were both charged with murder and interfering with a corpse in relation to Pheobe’s disappearance.
The 17-year-old had been living with them before she vanished on May 15 and they were the last people to see her alive after dropping her off at Bundaberg Airport.
Police continue to appeal for any information in relation to Pheobe Bishop or the movement of a grey Hyundai IX35 between May 15 to 18 in the greater Gin Gin area.
Shortly after Queensland Police announced they found the remains, Pheobe’s mum Kylie Johnson said the news was ‘ripping me apart’.
A body, believed to be that of Pheobe Bishop was found on Friday afternoon
Pheobe’s mother Kylie Johnson made public appeals for help in finding her daughter
‘I didn’t think my heart could break anymore then it did when you went missing, or when the charges were laid, but this! This is ripping me apart,’ she said.
The local community has been preparing to host a candlelight vigil for the teen on Sunday night.
‘Like most rural families we are resilient, proud and strong but this has brought us to our knees like no drought ever could,’ Ms Johnson said.
‘This vigil is a way of our family acknowledging Pheobe’s impact on our community.
‘While we don’t have Phee home to put to rest just yet, our community needs the healing process to start.’
The 17-year-old went missing after she failed to board a flight at Bundaberg Airport to Brisbane and then onto Western Australia to see her boyfriend on May 15.
Neither Pheobe nor her luggage have been seen since, and police say neither her phone or bank accounts have been accessed.
Detective Inspector Craig Mansfield said police would allege that Pheobe was murdered and her body was moved more than once.
James Wood has been charged with murder and interfering with a corpse in relation to Pheobe’s disappearance
Tanika Bromley was hit with the ame charges as Wood
‘Both of those accused have engaged with their lawyers and we are hoping to engage with them in the near future with that very prospect,’ he said.
Police will allege there was telephone data that led investigators to Good Night Scrub National Park.
Detective Inspector Mansfield said the teen did not make it to the airport but was at Airport Drive.
‘We will allege that our evidence will outline that three people arrived near to the airport and three people never exited that vehicle,’ he said.
‘Our investigations have been complex and protracted over the past three weeks. Those investigations have afforded us evidence to put both of those individuals before the court.’
