PHEOBE Bishop’s mum has made a heartbreaking statement after a body was found during a search for her teenage daughter.
Human remains were located on Friday during a search of an area near where Pheobe disappeared over three weeks ago.
Following the harrowing discovery, Pheobe’s mum Kylie Johnson made a heartwrenching post on Facebook.
She said: “I didn’t think my heart could break anymore than it did when you went missing, or when the charges were laid but this.
“This is ripping me apart.”
The shock development comes just hours after her two housemates James Wood and Tanika Bromley were arrested and charged with murder.
Police had been searching close to Good Night Scrub National Park, near Gin Gin, in Queensland, Australia.
Pheobe, aged 17, from Gin Gin, north of Brisbane, Australia, disappeared on Thursday, May 15.
She was supposed to board a flight to see her boyfriend on the same day she vanished, but the teenager never actually checked in.
Cops have not yet formally identified the body, but they are now talking to the family of the missing teen who vanished nearly a month ago.
Authorities stated that the short search began following additional inquiries and investigations conducted earlier today. The discovery was confirmed by specialized units at approximately 2:30pm.
Earlier on Friday, Detective Inspector Craig Mansfield had revealed that police expected to locate Pheobe’s body in the greater Gin Gin area.
Prior to locating the body, officials mentioned their suspicions of possibly finding Pheobe. However, they acknowledged the vast and challenging terrain that they aimed to narrow down.
A crime scene has now been established where the remains were found, and forensic examinations are ongoing.
Police are still appealing for anyone with relevant information on the case to come forward.
Shocking footage released on Friday showed the moment one of Pheobe’s alleged killers was arrested – as police told him to “just listen”.
Wood, 34, and Bromley, 33, were arrested on Thursday – before Pheobe’s sister broke down outside court while making an emotional plea.
The Australian teen’s housemates have each been charged with one count of murder and two counts of interfering with a corpse.
Police claimed that Pheobe’s body had been moved “more than once”.
Her corpse is said to have been in the Good Night Scrub National Park at one point before being relocated.
Human remains have now been found in an area which is close to this park.
In a dramatic video revealed by the Queensland Police, a disheveled Wood, barefoot, was seen being escorted out of what is believed to be his parents’ recreational vehicle.
Recorded at 7:20pm on Thursday in the Bundaberg area, the alleged killer is seen following cops without resisting.
But a policeman is later heard telling Wood: “Just listen to me.”
The rest of the clip’s audio is edited out, and it is unclear what provoked the policeman to say this to Wood.
There is also an unidentified figure in the caravan wearing orange shorts, standing behind Wood as he talks to one of the cops.
Wood is wearing a black graphic T-shirt with grey sweatpants as one officer grabs his arm and escorts him out.
After being taken out into the dark, the “Detective Sergeant with Bundaberg Child Protection Investigation Unit” makes the arrest.
The officer says: “I’m placing you under arrest for the homicide of Pheobe Bishop”.
Wood is then seen sitting alone at the back of an unmarked police car.
Both Wood and Bromley appeared at Bundaberg Magistrates Court on Friday morning, and will return to court on August 11.
Outside the building, Pheobe’s heartbroken sister Kaylea Bishop said her sibling was “loved and missed” dearly.
The 18-year-old desperately pleaded for anyone with information on the case to come forward.
Kaylea said: “I don’t know what to say, but if you’ve got any information about Pheobe, or the car or anything like that, just come forward.
“We just want her home.”
Kaylea and Pheobe had a close relationship and were planning to move in together last year.
Pheobe Bishop timeline
by Harvey Geh
May 14: Pheobe Bishop’s last known bank transaction takes place.
May 15: Pheobe is reportedly dropped off near Bundaberg Airport’s terminal by her housemates, James Wood and Tanika Bromley, in order to catch a flight to Brisbane and then to Perth to visit her boyfriend.
May 15, 8:30am: Pheobe makes a final phone call to her boyfriend before her scheduled flight. Her phone is then switched off and has remained inactive since.
May 15, post-8:30am: Pheobe fails to check in for her flight. CCTV footage confirms she did not enter the airport terminal.
May 16: Family and police initiate search efforts. Pheobe’s social media accounts show no activity during this period.
May 21: Police declare Pheobe’s disappearance as suspicious.
May 24: Nine days after disappearing, Pheobe’s distressed mum pleads the public for information. She says she is “absolutely begging anyone with any information to contact the Queensland Police Service”.
May 25: The search effort is widened to cover more area and homicide officers are brought in to help.
June 4: Police call off the “physical search for Pheobe, who has now been missing for three weeks.
June 5: Bromley and Wood are both arrested and charged with one count of murder and two counts of interfering with a corpse
June 6, 2:30pm: Police find human remains near the area Pheobe was last seen.
Also on Friday, Pheobe’s devastated mum paid tribute to her daughter Kaylea for bravely speaking out.
Johnson said on Facebook: “Kaylea your strength, determination and dedication to bring Phee Phee home is such a reflection of your fierce love for your sister.”
Cops are now set to allege that Wood, Bromley and Pheobe were all in the car when it arrived at Airport Drive near Bundaberg Airport in the morning of May 15.
Wood previously told the Daily Mail that Pheobe convinced the couple to pull over so she could do her makeup.
They then pulled over, less than a kilometre away from the airport, before Wood and Bromley left her and went for a walk “for five minutes”.
After returning to their silver Hyundai, they claim she had “disappeared”.
But police now believe that the trio never actually left the car.
Detective Inspector Craig Mansfield said: “Our evidence will outline the fact that three people arrived near to the airport, and three people never exited that vehicle.”
Australian teenager Pheobe was supposed to board a flight on May 15 to see her boyfriend – but mysteriously she never checked in.
The trio had an explosive drive to the airport according to Wood, which was the last time anyone had seen her.
A family member said: “Her phone has been switched off from this point.
“She hasn’t contacted anyone at all, no one has seen her.”
The trio had been living in a derelict pad together, which cops have now declared a crime scene.
Her distressed mum, Johnson, made a series of heartbreaking pleas begging anyone with information to come forward.
She also claimed that her daughter’s sudden disappearance was out of character.
The teen was supposed to fly to Brisbane and then to Perth to see her “high-school sweetheart” boyfriend but CCTV footage showed that she never entered the airport.
Her social media accounts have also not been active since she went missing.
And her last bank account activity was recorded on May 14, the day before she disappeared.
Bromley had previously been arrested after police allegedly found weapons in her silver Hyundai ix35 – the car which has been at the centre of police focus.
The day before, a new number plate was discovered to have been painted and taped over the Hyundai’s original plate.
Bromley appeared in the Bundaberg Magistrates Court last Monday, after cops alleged they found a shortened firearm, ammunition and two replica handguns inside her grey Hyundai.
She was charged with two counts of authority required to possess explosives, and one count each of possessing and acquiring restricted items and unlawful possession of weapons.
Additional ammunition was also reportedly found at the home.
