Police investigating the disappearance of missing mum Samantha Murphy have found an item of interest in bushland, and have declared a crime scene.

Ms Murphy, 51, had not been seen since she was leaving her home at Ballarat East at 7am on Sunday to go for a run in a state forest on the outskirts of the regional town, west of Melbourne.

Rather than searching the park, police established two search areas on Wednesday: outside her family home, and another in nearby bushland.

At about 12.30pm a search crew found a possible piece of evidence just off a walking trail at Woowookarung Regional Park.Detectives were seen looking very closely at a plastic tree guard before ejecting all reporters from the area.

Victoria Police declared a crime scene and ushered locals off the track. In a statement, police said they had ‘located some items during their search for missing Ballarat East woman Samantha Murphy.

‘The items will be assessed to determine if they are relevant to the investigation.

‘The search for Samantha continues, with the assistance of police Search & Rescue, uniform police, Canine Unit, Mounted Branch, SES and CFA.’

Samantha Murphy’s husband Michael was also turned away from the crime scene and looked visibly shaken at the wheel of his car.

Samantha Murphy’s husband looks visibly shaken at the wheel of his car as he is turned away from the crime scene

Police investigating the disappearance of missing mum Samantha Murphy have found an item of interest in bushland and declared a crime scene

At about 12.30pm a search crew found a possible piece of evidence by a plastic tree guard off a walking trail at Woowookarung Regional Park before ejecting reporters from the scene

Locals were ushered off the track at the park after the find of possible evidence connected with the disappearance of missing mum Samantha Murphy

Samantha Murphy left her Ballarat home at 7am on Sunday to go for a run in the nearby state forest and did not return home nor has she been seen since

Initially it was believed the mother-of-three may have had an accident in the national park, and some locals expressed fear that she may have fallen into one of the park’s many hard-to-see mine shafts  – a relic of Ballarat’s gold rush.Police, SES and volunteers performed a thorough search on Wednesday morning.

Volunteers were seen looking under bushes and inspecting scrubland directly outside the Murphy home.A person inside the home gave media outside ‘the bird’ before drawing closed the blinds. Police were also seen inside.

Across the road, officers were seen questioning a neighbour before then searching the rear of his property.Ms Murphy, an avid runner, was last seen wearing a brown/maroon singlet and black leggings

Victoria Police closed down a walking track (above) in the nearby state forest and kicked out media after finding an item of interest and declaring a crime scene.Daily Mail Australia witnessed detectives closely inspecting a new tree’s plant guard, after discovering an item of interest

SES crews outside the family home of Samantha Murphy on Wednesday. A large effort was focused on scouring the area outside her Ballarat East property – before attention shifted

Police on horseback walk past the Murphy compound on Wednesday as the search entered the fourth day.Search crews were also observed carrying out similar line searches along nearby  Eureka Road.

Ms Murphy, 51, had embarked on a 20km run through the Canadian State Forest, an area her husband Michael claimed she was very familiar with, but never returned.

Mr Murphy, who owns and operates a smash repairs business with his missing wife, has remained mostly tight-lipped since his wife went missing.Daily Mail Australia has been told media who approached his business on Tuesday were given a frosty reception.

‘It’s just up in the air, we don’t know,’ Mr Murphy reportedly told the Herald Sun on Tuesday.‘It’s just a whole time thing at the end of the day.’A police car sat in the driveway of Ms Murphy’s home on Wednesday morning

Police question one of Ms Murphy’s neighbours on Wednesday.An SES worker looks for clues outside the Murphy compound.Police and SES crews gather down the road from Ms Murphy’s family home on Wednesday

Friends of Ms Murphy are seen joining in the search in Ballarat East.On Wednesday, a worried neighbour told Daily Mail Australia Ms Murphy’s disappearance had shocked the community.

‘It’s just such a worry because you just don’t know what has happened. Is there someone out there? We just don’t know,’ she said.

Some locals are already beginning to come up with a range of theories as to what has happened, with some concerned about ‘suspicious’ characters living in the region.

A large-scale search has involved the Search and Rescue Squad, local police, more than 100 specialised officers from the dog squad, mounted branch, solo unit and air wing .SES crews and teams from Forest Fire Management Australia and Parks Victoria have also joined the search.

The Ballarat community has rallied together, with a growing number of residents and Ms Murphy’s friends joining the search efforts.Ms Murphy’s ‘upset and concerned’ family hold grave concerns and have described her disappearance as out of character.

On the morning Ms Murphy vanished, she was captured on her own CCTV system wearing a brown singlet and black half-length leggings.The search for missing mother-of-three Samantha Murphy (pictured) has entered its third day. Ms Murphy is an administrator at Inland Motor Body Works, which she owns with her husband

On Tuesday, Acting Inspector Lisa MacDougall said Ms Murphy’s mobile phone had pinged in Buninyong but that ‘inquiries are ongoing as to whether (the phone) is still on’.

‘Obviously, phones can run out of battery, but that forms part of the investigation,’ she told reporters on Monday.Ms Murphy was known to be fit and run almost daily in the state forest.

‘The area of search isn’t completely remote, we are on the outskirts of Ballarat, and it’s not that far from urban areas as well,’ Insp MacDougall said.

Temperatures soared to a scorching 36C on Sunday and it’s unknown whether Ms Murphy had food or water with her.‘(Sunday) was a hot day… there (is) obviously increased risk there because of the heat,’ Insp MacDougall added.

‘It raises the urgency of the search for us, and obviously we account for the fact that that will have an impact on someone’s health.’Ms Murphy is described as white, about 173cm tall, with a slim build and shoulder-length blonde hair.Anyone who sees her has been urged to contact police immediately.