By Lisa Edser For Daily Mail Australia
04:23 04 Jun 2024, updated 04:42 04 Jun 2024
Victoria Police have discovered a body believed to be that of a man who disappeared three days ago.
Matthew, 34, from Gordon, was last seen on Reservoir Road in Newlyn, north-east of Ballarat, about 2pm on Friday, May 31.
After concerns were raised for his welfare on Saturday, police and SES volunteers launched an urgent search of the surrounding bushland.
On Monday, police located a body in the Leonards Hill area, approximately 17km from where he was last seen in Newlyn.
‘The deceased is yet to be formally identified but is believed to be missing Gordan man Matthew,’ a Victoria Police spokesperson said.
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‘The death is not being treated as suspicious at this stage.’
Leonards Hill is about 38km from missing mum Samantha Murphy’s home on Eureka St in Ballarat.
Ms Murphy was last seen on CCTV in the driveway before she vanished after she left for a run in the Woowookarung Regional Park.
Victoria Police search crews last week discovered Ms Murphy’s iPhone in the mud on the water’s edge at Buninyong, about 19km from her Ballarat home.
The phone, protected by a teal-covered case, is undamaged and in working condition, with investigators hoping it could lead to the discovery of her body.
The device is believed to have been submerged in the dam since February 4 – the very day police allege Patrick Orren Stephenson, 22, murdered Ms Murphy while she was out on a Sunday jog.