A local woman was attacked by a stranger in a terrifying ordeal almost exactly a year ago on a forest trail near where missing mum Samantha Murphy has vanished.
Ms Murphy, 51, disappeared four days ago while out for a 7am run on Sunday in the Woowookarung Regional Park beauty spot near Ballarat, Victoria.
Police searching for the mother have now set up a crime scene in the park and sealed off the area after finding items of interest.
Now local politician Sissy Austin, 29, has revealed how she was battered unconscious by an unknown man as she jogged through nearby Lal Lal State Forest on February 11 last year.
Ms Austin was running along the motorbike track through woodland, just 20km from where Ms Murphy was jogging, when she was suddenly confronted by the stranger.
She just caught a glimpse of him before he lashed out and struck her on the head with a rock tied to the end of a stick.
The blow knocked her out cold and left her face bruised and bloodied, before she woke up minutes later, dazed but alone.
Ms Austin posted photos of herself before and after the attack at the hands of a man with a rock tied to a stick almost a year before Samantha Murphy vanished nearby on Sunday
Indigenous rights’ activist, Sissy Austin, 28, was beaten unconscious by an unidentified man while running in the Lal Lal state forest near Ballarat last year
The Lal Lal state forest is just 20km from where missing mum Samantha Murphy went for a run on Sunday in nearby Woowookarung Regional Park
Ms Austin, who stood for election to the Senate for the Greens, then ran 4km to raise the alarm and called for help from the emergency services.
‘Home now from hospital but in shock with a massive throbbing headache,’ she wrote on Facebook at the time, alongside pictures of her injuries.
‘Women should be able to safely go for a f***ing run in this colony.’
She later added: ‘All I remember is seeing a male for a very quick moment and the rock tied to a stick coming for me.
‘I woke up on the forest floor, I have no idea how long I was on the ground for. I remember standing up confused, covered in blood and flies.
‘The whole bush was spinning. I knew those tracks well, but once I stood up everything was blurry. I got very lost trying to find my way back to my car.’
‘That place is my safe, go-to place. I feel like I’m grieving that place now,’ she told the ABC at the time.
‘I run out there all the time. It’s beautiful country, Wathaurong country.’
Victoria Police said the attacker, who remains at large, was white, and was not wearing any top or shoes – just black jeans and a cap.
Ms Austin relived the horror incident as the hunt continued for Ms Murphy at Woowookarung Regional Park.
Her shell-shocked husband was spotted speaking to police at the crime scene on Wednesday where the search team found the new items of interest.
Daily Mail Australia witnessed mechanic Michael Murphy visiting the bush area at Woowookarung Regional Park about 1.45pm on Wednesday and speaking briefly to Victoria Police officers through a car window.
Mr Murphy, a panel beater, appeared visibly stunned and was turned away.
The search for Ms Murphy, 51, was rocked on Wednesday after a search party found possible evidence near a walking trail at about 12.30pm, with detectives seen looking closely at a plastic tree guard.
It is not suggested Mr Murphy played any role in Ms Murphy’s disappearance, only that he came to see what authorities had found.
Michael Murphy, the husband of missing mum Samantha Murphy, drove to the crime scene in Ballarat East at about 1.45pm on Wednesday
Exclusive photos captured Mr Murphy speaking to a police officer at the boundary of the search area, where he was turned away
Mr Murphy at the scene of the find
Police investigating the disappearance of missing mum Samantha Murphy have found an item of interest in bushland and declared a crime scene
Samantha Murphy left her Ballarat home at 7am on Sunday to go for a run in the nearby state forest and did not return home, nor has she been seen since
All reporters were ejected from the area. Police did not disclose what exactly they had found.
‘Police have located some items during their search for missing Ballarat East woman Samantha Murphy,’ a spokeswoman said.
‘The items will be assessed to determine if they are relevant to the investigation.
‘The search for Samantha continues, with the assistance of police Search & Rescue, uniform police, Canine Unit, Mounted Branch, SES and CFA.’
The mother-of-three vanished without a trace after going for a run in a state forest at 7am on Sunday.
Some locals have expressed fear that her running path may have taken her past several hard-to-see mine shafts.
Police, SES and volunteers appeared to leave no stone unturned in the search this morning.
Volunteers were seen looking under bushes and inspecting scrubland directly outside the Murphy home.
A person inside the home gave media outside ‘the bird’ before closing the blinds. Police were also seen inside.
Across the road, officers were seen questioning a neighbour before then searching the rear of his property.
Ms Murphy, an avid runner, was last seen wearing a brown/maroon singlet and black leggings
At about 12.30pm, a search crew found a possible piece of evidence by a plastic tree guard off a walking trail at Woowookarung Regional Park before ejecting reporters from the scene
Victoria Police closed down a walking track (above) in the nearby state forest and kicked out media after finding an item of interest and declaring a crime scene
Daily Mail Australia witnessed detectives closely inspecting a new tree’s plant guard, after discovering an item of interest
SES crews outside the family home of Samantha Murphy on Wednesday. A large effort was focused on scouring the area outside her Ballarat East property – before attention shifted
Police on horseback walk past the Murphy compound on Wednesday as the search entered its fourth day
Search crews were also observed carrying out similar line searches along nearby Eureka Road.
Ms Murphy, 51, had embarked on a 20km run through the Canadian State Forest, an area her husband Michael claimed she was very familiar with, but never returned.
Mr Murphy, who owns and operates a smash repairs business with his missing wife, has remained mostly tight-lipped since Ms Murphy went missing.
Daily Mail Australia has been told media who approached his business on Tuesday were given a frosty reception.
‘It’s just up in the air, we don’t know,’ Mr Murphy reportedly told the Herald Sun on Tuesday.
‘It’s just a whole time thing at the end of the day.’
A police car sat in the driveway of Ms Murphy’s home on Wednesday morning
Police question one of Ms Murphy’s neighbours on Wednesday
An SES worker looks for clues outside the Murphy compound
Police and SES crews gather down the road from Ms Murphy’s family home on Wednesday
On Wednesday, a worried neighbour told Daily Mail Australia Ms Murphy’s disappearance had shocked the community.
‘It’s just such a worry because you just don’t know what has happened. Is there someone out there? We just don’t know,’ she said.
Some locals are already beginning to come up with a range of theories as to what has happened, with some concerned about ‘suspicious’ characters living in the region.
A large-scale search has involved the Search and Rescue Squad, local police, more than 100 specialised officers from the dog squad, mounted branch, solo unit and air wing.
SES crews and teams from Forest Fire Management Australia and Parks Victoria have also joined the search.
The Ballarat community has rallied together, with a growing number of residents and Ms Murphy’s friends joining the search efforts.
Ms Murphy’s ‘upset and concerned’ family hold grave concerns and have described her disappearance as out of character.
On the morning Ms Murphy vanished, she was captured on her own CCTV system wearing a brown singlet and black half-length leggings.
The search for missing mother-of-three Samantha Murphy (pictured) has entered its third day
Ms Murphy is an administrator at Inland Motor Body Works, which she owns with her husband
On Tuesday, Acting Inspector Lisa MacDougall said Ms Murphy’s mobile phone had pinged in Buninyong but that ‘inquiries are ongoing as to whether [the phone] is still on’.
‘Obviously, phones can run out of battery, but that forms part of the investigation,’ she told reporters on Monday.
Ms Murphy was known to be fit and run almost daily in the state forest.
‘The area of search isn’t completely remote, we are on the outskirts of Ballarat, and it’s not that far from urban areas as well,’ Insp MacDougall said.
Temperatures soared to a scorching 36°C on Sunday and it’s unknown whether Ms Murphy had food or water with her.
‘Obviously, [Sunday] was a hot day… there [is] obviously increased risk there because of the heat,’ Insp MacDougall added.
‘It raises the urgency of the search for us, and obviously we account for the fact that that will have an impact on someone’s health.’
Ms Murphy is described as Caucasian, about 173cm tall, with a slim build and shoulder-length blonde hair.
Anyone who sees her has been urged to contact police immediately.
