Queensland Police have confirmed that human remains found in a remote national park belong to 17-year-old Pheobe Bishop, who was discovered missing last month after failing to board a flight from Bundaberg.
The Wide Bay teenager was last seen on the morning of May 15 near Bundaberg Airport.
She had planned to fly to Western Australia to visit her boyfriend but never made it onto the plane.
Days later, her housemates—34-year-old James Wood and 33-year-old Tanika Bromley—were arrested and charged with murder and two counts each of interfering with a corpse.
They are expected to appear in court in August.
Following a search effort led by detectives, skeletal remains were uncovered on June 6 in Good Night Scrub National Park, located roughly an hour from where Bishop was last seen.
At the time, authorities had not confirmed the identity, although they were in contact with her family.
Allegations of a Planned Killing and Moved Evidence
According to police, Bishop was driven to the vicinity of Bundaberg Airport in a grey Hyundai IX35 with her two housemates on the day she disappeared.
However, investigators allege that no one exited the vehicle. It is believed that she was killed before reaching the terminal.
The investigation suggests Bishop’s body was moved multiple times before ultimately being left in the national park.
Officers had previously searched the Good Night Scrub area based on mobile phone location data and other evidence, suspecting that critical items or remains may have been relocated prior to their arrival.
Authorities continue to look for missing belongings—including her phone and luggage—and are appealing for any information related to the grey Hyundai’s movements in the Gin Gin area between May 15 and 18.
“Investigations into locating more items of interest in relation to this matter remain ongoing,” police said in a statement.