New challenge facing Sam Murphy cops

Cops investigating the alleged murder of Samantha Murphy may have hit a new problem, trouble accessing her mobile phone.

Officers found the mum’s iPhone next to a dam on a property in Buninyong on Wednesday in a targeted search.

The discovery of the phone is a big breakthrough in the case and police are likely hoping it would lead them to the mum’s body, which has still not been found.

However, family members do not know the passcode and there have been cases where manufacturers have refused to hand over passcodes to police in cases in foreign jurisdictions, the Herald Sunreports.

If and when they do unlock Ms Murphy’s phone police are expected to compare data with any other phones known to be in the immediate area.

Ms Murphy’s phone also contains tracking data transferred from her smart watch.

This may show whether she was transported by a vehicle.

Apple can unlock phones but data is wiped on accessing the phone.

“Devices locked with a passcode are protected by pass code encryption, and Apple can’t help remove the pass code lock without erasing the device,” Apple’s privacy statement reads.

“For security, Apple requires and verifies legal documentation before we can assist with a deceased person’s account.“This generally includes a death certificate, and may also require a court order or other documentation. The requirements vary by country and region.”

Ms Murphy was going for a run in Ballarat East on February 4 when she vanished.

Retired detective Charlie Bezzina has suggested that someone may have discarded the phone in the dam and then concealed Ms Murphy’s body elsewhere in a bid to mislead police.

Mr Bezzina, a veteran cop with decades of experience, said he found it perplexing that police could locate the submerged phone without prior intelligence.

He speculated that authorities might have had some degree of tracking information while the phone was still active, hinting that the police may know more than they’re disclosing.

The phone, encased in a wallet-like cover with cards inside, was among several “items of interest” found near the Buninyong dam. It was discovered by a police dog along Buninyong-Mt Mercer Road, where police teams equipped with picks, shovels, rakes, and metal detectors, meticulously searched the surrounding blackberry bushes.

Police divers entered the dam later in the afternoon.

Mr Bezzina theorised that someone could have kept Ms Murphy’s phone for some time before discarding it in the dam.

“With phones it’s amazing. There’s a lot the carrier, or carriers, don’t tell us about the capabilities of a phone,” Mr Bezzina said via Herald Sun.“When you’ve got a phone that’s off, people ask the question, ‘is it still transmitting’, and ‘if the battery goes flat does it still transmit?’ Some do and some don’t.”

Mr Bezzina said it’s not uncommon for offenders to keep items for a while before discarding them, particularly mobile phones.

“We don’t know when that phone was dumped in there, it is not unusual for offenders to keep items for a while, especially mobile phones … for all we know that might have been discarded just weeks’ ago,” he said.

“Often offenders go back and do things, keep the phone somewhere or with them, and then dump it later on.”

A man is scheduled to appear at Ballarat Magistrates’ Court on August 8 charged with Ms Murphy’s murder.