Fresh details about Samantha Murphy’s mobile phone found during a search for the missing Victorian mother can be revealed by 7NEWS.
Last Wednesday, missing persons squad detectives searching near a dam in Buninyong, not far from Murphy’s Ballarat home, found her phone in its teal-coloured case.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Police analysing data of phone found in Samantha Murphy investigation.
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After the discovery, police officers were seen hugging and patting the sniffer dog. Forensic testing of the phone and case is ongoing.
But 7NEWS can reveal the mobile phone is undamaged and in near-perfect working condition.
Last week, Murphy’s husband confirmed to 7NEWS that her credit cards, licence and iPhone were uncovered in mud at the dam.
Sources told 7NEWS the phone was a significant clue that could provide location data of the Ballarat mum’s final movements.
Metadata from her phone will now be extracted, with investigators hoping it will reveal her final movements and the possible location of her body.
The search of the dam involved police divers and metal detectors and aerial shots also showed an excavator ripping up chunks of dirt next to a road.
“Since February, police have regularly undertaken a range of inquiries and small-scale searches as part of the current investigation,” police said on Wednesday.
“Samantha’s family has also been advised of the search.”
Detectives zeroed in on nearby bushland south of Buninyong, about 18km from Murphy’s home and 2km from where her phone was found.
Murphy was last seen leaving her home on Eureka St, Ballarat, to go for a run in the Canadian State Forest on February 4.
In March, police searched extensively for the missing mother in the Buninyong area but could not find any trace of her.
There have also been extensive searches of the Canadian State Forest and Enfield State Park over the past few months.
Police allege Patrick Orren Stephenson murdered Murphy at nearby Mount Clear on the day she went missing.
The 22-year-old was arrested at the beginning of March and charged with murder, and is due to return to court in August.
He is the son of former AFL player Orren Stephenson, who played 15 games for Geelong and Richmond between 2012 and 2014.
The tradesman has hired top criminal defence lawyer Paul Galbally, who represented the late Cardinal George Pell, to defend him, according to reports.