Murray Jeffries (born 1 August 1937) is a former New Zealand field athlete and police officer. He represented his country in the high jump at the

1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games The 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Vancouver, British Columbia, from 30 July to 7 August 1954. This was the fifth edition of the event that would eventually become known as the Commonwealth Games, the second post-war G ...

, and was the national high jump champion on four occasions between 1961 and 1966. A police detective, Jeffries was involved in high-profile investigations including the

murder of Harvey and Jeannette Crewe __NOTOC__ David Harvey Crewe (20 October 1941 – 17 June 1970) and Jeannette Lenore Crewe (née Demler; 6 February 1940 – 17 June 1970) were a New Zealand farming couple who were shot to death in their home on or about 17 June 1970. The mur ...

and the

murder of Teresa Cormack Teresa Maida Cormack (18 June 1981 – 19 June 1987) was a six-year-old murder victim from Napier, New Zealand. After fifteen years, advances in genetic analysis led to conviction of Jules Mikus (28 September 1958 – 6 December 2019) for t ...

Early life and family

Jeffries was born in

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

on 1 August 1937, the son of Florence and Harry Jeffries. He was educated at

Otahuhu College Otahuhu College is a secondary school in Auckland, New Zealand for students years 9 to 13. Location It is located in the suburb of Ōtāhuhu and is a co-educational school. The main campus entrance is on Mangere Road, the Memorial Field sport ...

, and went on to study at Ardmore Teachers' College from 1956 to 1957, earning a Primary School Teaching Certificate. In 1959, Jeffries married Barbara Anne Armstrong, and the couple had three children. Barbara Jeffries died in 1995.

Athletics

In 1954, Jeffries set a junior national record of in the high jump. He was a member of the New Zealand team at the

, where he finished ninth in the high jump with a height of . Jeffries won four New Zealand junior national titles in 1955, in the high jump, javelin throw, shot put and discus throw, and that year broke the national junior record for the high jump, with a leap of , and the javelin throw, recording a distance of . The following year, he competed in Australia with the New Zealand Universities track and field team. He was nominated for the New Zealand team for the

1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XVI Olympiad and officially branded as Melbourne 1956, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

by the New Zealand Amateur Athletic Association, but he was not selected by the New Zealand Olympic and British Empire Games Association. Jeffries won four national high jump titles: in 1961, 1962, 1964 (title shared with Bill Speirs), and 1966. His best winning jump was in 1966, with a height of .

Police career

After a short period as a primary school teacher, Jeffries joined the New Zealand Police, and at the passing out for his intake at the Trentham Police Training School in December 1959 he won the prize for sportsmanship. He went on to become a detective at the Otahuhu

Criminal Investigation Branch The Criminal Investigation Branch (CIB) is one of the main branches of the New Zealand Police and it is dedicated to investigating and solving serious crime, and targeting organized crime and recidivist criminals. The CIB has existed since the ...

, and he was officer in charge of the scene following the 1970 murders of Jeannette and Harvey Crewe at their

Pukekawa Pukekawa is a town in the Waikato Plains, Lower Waikato River area of New Zealand's North Island, 66 km south of central Auckland. The area's fertile soils are used to grow a range of vegetables, including onions, potatoes and carrots. Th ...

farm. Jeffries later moved to

Hawke's Bay Hawke's Bay () is a region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region is named for Hawke Bay, which was named in honour of Edward Hawke. The region's main centres are the cities of Napier and Hastings, while the more rural ...

, where he was involved in investigations including the disappearance of Kirsa Jensen and the

. He was also involved in the establishment of neighbourhood support and rural support groups in Hawke's Bay, and the victim support group in Napier. In 1979, Jeffries received the

New Zealand Police Long Service and Good Conduct Medal The New Zealand Police Long Service and Good Conduct Medal is a New Zealand Meritorious & Long Service Awards, long service award for full-time sworn officers and traffic officers of the New Zealand Police who have completed 14 years of service. ...

, and in 1990 he was awarded the

New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal The New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal was a commemorative medal awarded in New Zealand in 1990 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, and was awarded to 3,632 people. Background The New Zealand 1990 Com ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jeffries, Murray 1937 births Living people Athletes from Auckland People educated at Otahuhu College Athletes (track and field) at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games athletes for New Zealand New Zealand male high jumpers New Zealand schoolteachers New Zealand police officers 20th-century New Zealand sportsmen