“She Would Never Leave Her Family Without Contact”: Search Intensifies for Missing Australian Teen Pheobe Bishop

A desperate search is underway in Queensland, Australia, for 17-year-old Pheobe Bishop, who vanished five days ago after failing to board a scheduled flight from Bundaberg to Western Australia. Authorities say the teen was last seen around 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 15, when she was dropped off near Airport Drive in Bundaberg.

According to Queensland Police, Pheobe did not enter the airport terminal and “has not been seen or heard from since.” In a Monday, May 19 update, police confirmed that she missed her flight and has not contacted family or friends.

“She had a flight booked to Brisbane and then on to WA [Western Australia] to visit a friend,” said Detective Acting Inspector Ryan Thompson, per the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). “As time goes on, the more worried the family is and the more concerned police are becoming.”

While police have not officially named the teen in their public releases, local media including ABC and Sky News Australia have identified her as Pheobe Bishop. Authorities have circulated photographs and a physical description in hopes the public can help.

“She was last seen carrying luggage and wearing a green tank top and grey sweatpants,” police stated. Pheobe is described as about 180cm tall (around 5 feet 9 inches), with a pale complexion, long dyed red hair, and hazel eyes.

Police are working to piece together her last known movements. “Police are conducting inquiries with the airport and CCTV footage to try and narrow down her movements from when she was last seen,” Thompson said.

Officers have searched Airport Drive and surrounding areas but have not found Pheobe or any of her belongings. Investigators are now appealing for dashcam footage from the Airport Drive and Samuels Road area between 8:30 and 9:30 a.m. on the day she went missing.

In a public plea, her mother Kylie Johnson has been sharing updates on social media. “My heart is breaking and so are those of her siblings, her family, and our friends,” she wrote on Facebook.

“If you knew Pheobe, you would know that she is free-spirited and loves hard! She is loyal to the core and cutthroat. She would never leave her family without contact,” Johnson emphasized.

Anyone with information about Pheobe’s whereabouts is urged to contact Queensland Police immediately.

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