Loved him for a very long time
Ex’s lament for slain Andy
The fatal bludgeoning of a homeless man sleeping at a popular Tweeds Head park has devastated loved ones and shaken the community.
Andrew Whyte Murray, an electrician and father of two, has been remembered by loved ones after dying from horrific head injuries inside his sleeping bag at Jack Evans Boat Harbour on November 21, 2019. He was 56.
Kevin James Pettiford was found guilty of murder on December 6. He is incarcerated awaiting sentencing.
Pettiford’s trial heard he told police in interviews he was the “Hand of Death” and hoped to become Australia’s most prolific serial killer.
Mr Murray’s ex-partner of 14 years, Mychelle Austyn said Andy wasn’t just a “rough sleeper”: “He has two adult daughters, a sister, and a brother.
“He had a very successful electrical business in Newcastle where he lived with his then wife and daughters.
“We met after he separated.” She described Andy as very intelligent, full of “incredible conversations” and an “extremely talented” artist.
Ms Austyn said Andy went to Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) for years and devoted time as a drug and alcohol counsellor as well as sponsoring other AA members.
“We met through a friend of mine that set us up on a blind date and we hit it off straight away,” Ms Austyn said.
“His sense of humour was hilarious, I always thought he should have done stand up.”
Born in Engadine in Sydney, Mr Murray went to school at Bundeena and later at Cronulla High School.
“We were extremely happy and in love,” Ms Austyn said.
“We were the couple that people wanted to be. We had a perfect, loving relationship for the start of it, we worked together in his electrical business for a few years then out of the blue he started drinking.”
She said Andy was sober a long time before they met.
“Out of the blue he started drinking (again and) I had no idea what an alcoholic was, so when I noticed he was drinking I wasn’t concerned,” she said,
“Then it got worse. He tried so hard not to drink. He went to rehab and AA which were successful for a period of time until it wasn’t any longer.”
Northern NSW homelessness advocate John Lee OAM, of Tweed Heads-based charity You Have A Friend, said he was “repulsed” by Pettiford’s slaying of Mr Murray, calling it a “shocking, disgusting act”.
Mr Lee said his volunteers encountered Mr Murray on Tweed Heads streets in months leading up to his death.
“They were trying to assist Andy with a more stable sleeping arrangement. Homelessness does not discriminate. There’s no generic type of person.”
The dangers of sleeping rough were “very real”, particularly in the Tweed Heads, he said.
Incidents of late-night assaults appear commonplace.
Ms Austyn said Andy’s struggle eventually got the better of him and the “demon had won”.
“After 14 years we decided to call it quits. He actually chose to live on the streets as he found it interesting. His homelessness was his choice, sadly.”
She said Andy couldn’t and didn’t want “to fight it anymore”.
“He truly was an incredible man that lost the battle. To hear what actually happened to him in detail was very traumatic.
“I loved him for so long.”