Gin Gin house sold amid Phoebe Bishop case as murder charges proceed

A quiet private sale of a Gin Gin house tied to a widely publicized homicide case has drawn attention as authorities pursue ongoing court proceedings. The three-bedroom, one-bathroom Queenslander at 27 Milden Street was sold on June 13, just days after Phoebe Bishop, the 17-year-old who had been living there, vanished on a trip to Bundaberg Airport.

Phoebe Bishop was last seen on May 15 while leaving town for a flight to Brisbane, part of a planned journey to visit her boyfriend in Western Australia. She was declared missing the following day after she did not check in for an 8:30 a.m. flight. A major search followed, with police and search crews scouring roads, waterways, and surrounding properties for weeks. On June 6, authorities announced that the teenager’s remains had been found in Good Night Scrub National Park, an isolated area near Gin Gin, ending a tense chapter in the case.

The case quickly extended beyond the disappearance timeline to allegations surrounding the residence Bishop shared with two others. Police described the Milden Street home as a crime scene, reporting conditions that neighbours described as shocking. Bags containing the bodies of dead dogs and widespread rubbish and dog faeces were among the items found inside, and a strong odor of decomposing material lingered in the street as investigators worked.

The property’s young owners, Milena and Jacob Otto of Far North Queensland, had rented the home to Tanika Bromley for about $550 per week. The Ottos learned of the home’s condition only after media outlets began reporting on Phoebe’s disappearance. Once police declared the house a crime scene, the Ottos opened their doors to media scrutiny and discussed their plans to clean and re-rent the property.

In the wake of the investigation, the Ottos launched a GoFundMe appeal on June 10 to help cover cleanup costs, stating that the home had once been a cherished family space and that insurance, repairs, and the vast amount of rubbish made it uninhabitable. The campaign raised about $2,275 before closing a few days later. The Ottos said they hoped to restore the property and return it to rental use, but the subsequent sale redirected that plan.

Property records show the house was sold on June 13 to a private buyer for $360,000. The sale price was below Gin Gin’s median home price, which sits around $460,000, and it produced an estimated $200,000 profit for the Ottos, who had purchased the property in 2018 for $160,000. The new owner, described as local, has indicated an intention to restore the classic Queenslander to its former condition.

Family members of Phoebe expressed frustration with the handling of the property and the broader case. Phoebe’s aunt, Carolea Johnson, who is estranged from Phoebe’s mother Kylie Bishop, described the sale as mentioning a quiet process and questioned what details were shared publicly. Johnson posted online that the house was cleaned up and sold, raising questions about transparency and the terms of the deal. Daily Mail contacted the Ottos for comment but did not receive a response.

On the legal front, Bromley and Wood were charged with one count of murder and two counts of interfering with a corpse in June and remain in custody as proceedings continue. They were scheduled for a Bundaberg Magistrates Court appearance in August, with the next hearing listed for November. In July, a third person, Kieren Mittelheuser, 30, was charged with two counts of accessory after the fact to murder for allegedly using Phoebe Bishop’s mobile phone to interfere with investigations. The case has highlighted the complex interplay between family homes, private property transactions, and high-profile criminal investigations in a rural Australian town.

As the judicial process progresses, authorities have emphasized that the investigation remains active and that new evidence and testimonies could shape the proceedings. The Gin Gin community, which had been shaken by the case, continues to monitor developments as prosecutors outline the timeline of events from the teenager’s disappearance to the discovery of her remains in the Good Night Scrub National Park. The sale of the 27 Milden Street property adds a practical, financial dimension to a case that has gripped a small town and drawn national attention.