Missing girl's mum 'ripped apart' as body found in search for missing teenager
A mum of a missing 17-year-old girl has told how she is 'ripped apart' after police said they had found a body.
Pheobe Bishop disappeared after failing to check in for her flight at Bundaberg Regional Airport in Queensland on Thursday May 15 at 8.30am which raised concerns for her welfare and sparked a major police search. The search for the teenager gripped the nation and on Thursday her housemates James and Tanika Bromley were arrested and charged with one count of murder and two counts each of interfering with a corpse.
And yesterday a body was found close to the Good Night Scrub National Park, near Gin Gin, in Queensland. State police said: " The remains are yet to be formally identified; however, investigators are in contact with the family of missing 17-year-old Pheobe Bishop."
And now Pheobe's distraught mum Kylie Johnson has written on Facebook how the news was 'ripping me apart'. She said: 'I didn't think my heart could break anymore then it did when you went missing, or when the charges where laid but this! This is ripping me apart…'
The update from police on the discovery of the body also stated: 'The brief search commenced after further enquires and investigations today, with the discovery being made by specialist units around 2:30pm.
"The remains are yet to be formally identified; however, investigators are in contact with the family of missing 17-year-old Pheobe Bishop. A crime scene has been declared at the location and forensic examinations are continuing.'
And it also made an appeal to the public over a car. '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. Investigations continue,' it stated.
Detectives believe that Pheobe was in a car with her housemates when it arrived close to Bundaberg Airport on May 15 but that she never boarded a flight to Western Australia to reunite with her boyfriend.
Pheobe's mum earlier today wrote on social media that a candlelit vigil would be held for her daughter on Sunday, June 8. She said: "This is for our amazing community! Honestly we have received calls, txts and so many messages of support.
"Like most Rural families we are resilient, proud and strong but this has brought us to our knees like no drought ever could. This vigil is a way of our family acknowledging Pheobe's impact on our Community, their efforts and the importance of a community that cares!
"For those reasons this is an important part of a communities healing. While we don't have Phee Home to put to rest just yet, our community needs the healing process to start."
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Daily Mail
03-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Pictured: The fisherman charged with interfering with police investigation into Pheobe Bishop's alleged murder
The third person hit with charges linked to the disappearance and murder of teenager Pheobe Bishop has been unmasked as a keen fisherman who goes by 'The Crabman'. Police charged 30-year-old Kieren Daniel Mittelheuser with two counts of accessory after the fact to murder, alleging he used Ms Bishop's mobile phone to interfere with investigations. Mittelheuser was taken into custody outside a local fast food outlet in Bundaberg West, in south east Queensland, around 7pm on Tuesday. The arrest occurred one day after family and friends farewelled the 17-year-old at a private service. He has also been charged with drug possession, driving while disqualified, failing to appear, breaching bail and fraud. The fraud charge refers to the use of a credit card that is linked to the accessory after the fact charge, Bundaberg paper NewsMail reported. Mittelheuser is a father but is not believed to have lived with his child recently. He appeared nonchalant on his social media, posting a day before the teenager's remains were found that he didn't care whether his foot hung off the bed or not. Ms Bishop was last seen near Bundaberg airport about 8.30am on May 15 after booking a trip to Western Australia to see her boyfriend. A massive search was launched in the park by authorities who traced Ms Bishop's phone there Queensland Police allege that housemates, Tanika Bromley and James Wood, drove her close to the airport in a grey Hyundai, but no one left the car. She was allegedly murdered and her body was moved more than once from the Good Night Scrub National Park, an hour's drive from the airport. Phone data led officers to the national park where her remains were found on June 6. Wood, 34, and Bromley, 33, remain behind bars and will front court on August 11, charged with murder and interfering with a corpse. Mittelheuser did not appear in person but instead dialled in by phone for his court mention on Wednesday. Mark Zeller, a solicitor with Indigo Law, acted as duty lawyer. He did not apply for bail and no pleas have been entered. Mittelheuser will next appear in court via video link on August 25. Multiple candlelit vigils attended by hundreds have been held across Bundaberg and Gin Gin in recent weeks, remembering how Ms Bishop lived life to the fullest. Six weeks after Ms Bishop disappeared, family and friends laid the 'free-spirited' teen to rest while donning bright colours at a service on Monday. None of those alleged to be involved with her murder have yet entered any pleas. Ms Bishop was reported missing in late May, prompting a wide search of bushland and the home she shared with Bromley and Wood. Wood was taken into custody first on June 6 where he has been assisting police with their inquiries. Bromley was taken into custody soon after where she was charged with the same offences as Wood. The pair are each facing one count each of murder, and two counts each of interfering with a corpse. Police allege Ms Bishop was killed, her body transported in a grey Hyundai, and moved twice before being buried in remote national parkland.
Daily Mail
03-07-2025
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE He was just another face in the crowd of mourners at Pheobe Bishop's funeral, but the reality will break your heart - and Pheobe's mum reveals the grim memento she's had made from her daughter's REMAINS
Pheobe Bishop's heartbroken boyfriend journeyed almost 5,000km across the width of Australia to say a heartbreaking final farewell to his lost love at her funeral. Levi, 18, made the heart-wrenching trip from his home in Western Australia to Bundaberg in central Queensland to join her grieving family for the service. Pheobe, 17, had been on her way to see Levi when she vanished en route from her hometown of Gin Gin to Bundaberg Airport on May 15. She never made the flight and weeks later, police discovered her remains near Goodnight Scrub National Park. On Thursday, Pheobe's mum Kylie Johnson revealed she had managed to get some of her daughter's hair returned to her to make into lockets as a lasting reminder. Phoebe's former housemates Tanika Bromley, 33, and James Wood, 34, have now been charged with her murder and are in jail awaiting their next court appearance. Neither has entered pleas. On Monday, the teen's family gathered with scores of mourners for the service - where everyone wore bright clothes and no-one in black - before a private cremation. Pheobe's distraught big sister Kaylea was pictured by an AAP photographer being held back by an aunt after she was overcome by emotion as the hearse pulled away. But just behind Pheobe's family as they watched her coffin drive off, Levi could be seen standing solemnly as he too paid his heartbreaking last goodbye. 'As upsetting as it was, it meant a lot for him to be there as they laid her to rest,' a family friend told Daily Mail Australia. 'His father Rick supported that decision and did everything he could to make sure he was able to attend and get some closure.' 'They were so far away when all this began and Phee went missing and it just added to the pain he was feeling.' Pheobe had called Levi on the morning she went missing as she was being driven by Wood and Bromley to the airport - but he was unable to hear anything before the call cut off. Levi waited patiently in vain for her to arrive, dutifully checking flight after flight, until he realised something had gone horribly wrong and raised the alarm. Levi's father Rick - speaking on his son's behalf – previously opened up to Daily Mail Australia. (We are not revealing Levi's surname at the family's request.) Rick said Levi was traumatised by Pheobe's death - but said the family wanted to pay tribute to the special bond between the lovestruck teenagers. 'Levi absolutely adored Pheobe,' he said. 'They would video chat all night, every night, falling asleep - and then they would tell each other who was sleep-talking the next day,' Rick told Daily Mail Australia. 'It was a bit cute.' The tragedy marks the second heartbreaking loss for Levi's family in just four years. His father Rick revealed Levi's mother, Jade Warry, was killed in a car crash in Bundaberg in 2020, a devastating blow that eventually prompted the family to relocate across the country in search of a fresh start. 'His beautiful mum had a car accident on New Year's Eve 2020, and the kids would go past the site every day on the school bus,' Rick said. 'It was too hard on them, the constant reminder. Ms Warry's funeral was held just a short drive from Pheobe's service, in the Rose Chapel in Bundaberg, in January 2021, where mourners were also encouraged to wear bright colours to celebrate the life of the beloved mother-of-six. Jade was travelling on Bucca Road in Bundaberg when her vehicle crashed into a tree just before 9pm. A passing motorist found Jade and paramedics were called to the scene - but nothing could be done to save her life. Rick and Jade had been planning their wedding for the following year and he admitted he was devastated by the loss. Pheobe and Levi both attended the same local school, but Rick and his family faced daily reminders of the horrific tragedy, and the father decided he needed to move far away to escape the confronting traumatic scene. 'Moving to WA was the best move,' he said. 'I never thought I'd see them happy again. 'And it meant the world to us for Pheobe to come over.' The father-of-six said the couple had been excited for weeks about their reunion and were busily planning out every detail. 'Levi had bought Pheobe a Canon camera worth $1,000 because she wanted to get into photography,' he said. 'A week before she was supposed to land, Levi had packed the 4WD up with camping gear. 'He had planned a trip to Esperance in WA, camping on the beach with Pheobe. 'They were both really excited about that. 'It's so heartbreaking seeing what could have been a beautiful future together shattered into pieces.' Pheobe's funeral notice described her as the 'beloved daughter of Kylie and Ray, Kevin and Stacey. Dearly loved sister of Jamie, Jesse, Kaylea, Ruby-Leigh, Aybel and sister-in-law to Janay. Loving aunty to Tallullah. Much loved niece, cousin and friend to many'. Ms Johnson said she was 'devastated' to farewell her daughter. 'This is absolutely everybody's worst nightmare. However, we promised to get Phee home and give her a send-off that Phee would approve of, and that's what will happen,' she said in a statement. In a post to Instagram on Thursday, Ms Johnson showcased the lockets she had made for herself and sister Kaylea to keep a connection with Pheobe close to their hearts forever. 'We had these beautiful pieces designed by Ash Northern Jewellery Co - The Workshop in Bundaberg!' she posted. 'We now have a piece of Phee Phee wherever we go, she's with us. 'Ash has been amazing, compassionate and empathetic on this journey with us, and honestly Kaylea and I love what she's done!
Daily Mail
01-07-2025
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Third person charged after alleged murder of Pheobe Bishop
A third person has been arrested and charged following the alleged murder of Bundaberg teenager Pheobe Bishop. The 30-year-old man had been charged with two counts of accessory after the fact to murder, one count of failure to appear in accordance with undertaking and one breach of bail condition. He will face Bundaberg Magistrates Court on Wednesday. Pheobe, 17, went missing near Bundaberg Airport about 8.30am on May 15, after booking a trip to WA to visit her boyfriend. On June 6, police discovered the Gin Gin teenager's remains near Goodnight Scrub National Park. Her former housemates, 33-year-old Tanika Bromley and 34-year-old James Wood, were charged with her murder and are being held in jail on remand while they await their next court appearance. Neither have entered pleas. More to come.
