Police are investigating the “suspicious” disappearance of a 17-year-old girl who was reportedly on her way to visit her “high school sweetheart” in Western Australia.
Pheobe Bishop was last seen on 15 May at the Bundaberg Airport in Queensland, booked to fly from Bundaberg to Western Australia, with a stopover in Brisbane. But police said she never boarded the plane and hasn’t been heard from since.
Her family issued a public appeal for information while local law enforcement said Ms Bishop was living at a property in rural Gin Gin in Queensland before her disappearance. On Wednesday, reports emerged of several dead dogs found at the property, though police have not confirmed this detail.
The site appeared abandoned, with bags of rubbish, a large bus, and a boat seen out front, according to Sky News Australia.
Ms Bishop had reportedly been staying there with several people, but no one was present when authorities checked. Her phone, social media, and bank accounts have all been inactive since 14 May – the day before she vanished.
On Wednesday, police declared Ms Bishop’s disappearance “suspicious” and established two major crime scenes as part of their investigation. Police declared the property and the grey Hyundai ix35 that is believed to have dropped her at the airport, as major crime scenes.
Ms Bishop’s mother, Kylie Johnson, described the disappearance as completely “out of character”, particularly during a week of family mourning – the death anniversaries of her best friend and her grandfather.
“If you knew Pheobe you would know that she is free spirited and loves hard! She is loyal to the core and cutthroat,” she said.
She said Ms Bishop would “never not contact us at this emotional time that she needs us to regulate her and her emotions”.
Detectives are urging the public to share dashcam or CCTV footage of a grey Hyundai ix35 (QLD rego 414EW3) seen near Airport Drive and Samuels Road in Bundaberg, as well as in the Gin Gin area on 15 May.
A family member told the Daily Mail Ms Bishop had saved money for her air fare to visit her boyfriend in Western Australia. “He was her high school sweetheart that moved away,” the family member reportedly said.
The outlet reported another relative as saying that Ms Bishop had spoken to her boyfriend on the phone just before she disappeared.
Earlier, acting inspector Ryan Thompson said police were still trying to determine “whether Pheobe was actually dropped off at the airport, and whether she knew the driver of the SUV”.
He said: “We’re still working together to piece together her movements on that day.
“We do have concerns for her safety due to the reason that it’s been nearly a week since she was last sighted and it’s out of character for her not to make any contact with anyone.
“We also have concerns she has not checked in as she was required to do. Police have reviewed CCTV from the airport. which indicates that she did not enter the terminal.”
During a press conference on Wednesday, Mr Thompson added that one of the two people Ms Bishop had been living with in the town of Gin Gin, west of Bundaberg, had dropped her off at the airport. He said police are also investigating reports that the 17-year-old was involved in an argument with the driver en route to the airport and was allegedly forced out of the car before she vanished.
Mr Thompson confirmed that the reported altercation is forming part of the investigation.
The teen was last seen wearing a green tank top and grey sweatpants, carrying luggage. Her loved ones, who’ve plastered hundreds of posters across the region, are pleading for any information.
Ms Bishop’s mother, Ms Johnson, wrote on her Facebook on Wednesday: “As we enter another day with Pheobe still missing our hearts are breaking more and more. Phee we just need to know that you’re ok?
“We just need to hear your voice!”
She wrote: “Phee we love you more than you could imagine and we’re praying that you come home.”
Police say they’ll investigate “as long as it takes” to find Ms Bishop.
