Surfer Kye Schaefer: Police reveal more details on investigation into Coffs Harbour stabbing death
Senior police have revealed more details about the final moments of young surfer Kye Schaefer’s life before he was “cut down” in his prime in a stabbing that has rocked a Mid-North Coast town.
Coffs Harbour
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Senior police have revealed more details about the final moments of young surfer Kye Schaefer’s life before he was “cut down” in his prime, in a brutal stabbing that has rocked the Coffs Harbour community.
Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty addressed the media on Wednesday afternoon saying Kye had just put his wetsuit on next to his “pride and joy” – his distinctive orange Ford Falcon – prior to going for a surf at Park Beach on May 2 when he was stabbed multiple times in what he described as a random and unprovoked attack.
“This is a really sad event – this is a 21-yr-old who has been cut down in the prime of his life. His life has been savagely taken away from him in a random and unprovoked attack,” Det Spt Doherty said.
“The Coffs Harbour community is taking it hard and we are highly motivated to see this out.”
He also revealed that a man was arrested in the area about 30 minutes after the murder and was “charged with being involved in an alleged robbery in the vicinity”.
On Tuesday afternoon The Daily Telegraph revealed a homeless man living in a tent in the nearby jetty area is alleged to have robbed a man while wielding a metal star picket at the same time and just a few hundred metres from the stabbing.
This man was arrested just after 5pm on the day of the stabbing after allegedly robbing a $4000 Cube e-bike from Ventoux Cycles.
He appeared in Coffs Harbour Local Court the next morning charged with robbery while armed with an offensive weapon and larceny.
Bail was formally refused and the man was remanded in custody to reappear in Coffs Harbour Local Court on June 25.
No one has been charged in relation to Mr Schaefer’s death.
Det Spt Doherty said the state’s homicide squad happened to be in Coffs Harbour at the time of the stabbing on another matter, so were able to act quickly forming Strike Force Kooringaroo to probe the death.
He said officers were yet to locate a potential murder weapon and reiterated calls for people to come forward with any information or dashcam footage that may help in their investigations.
Specifically, investigators have called for public assistance in identifying a bike rider seen in the vicinity of the Ocean St carpark at the time of the murder.
Det Spt Doherty said while the murder took place in the early hours of the morning it is a busy location with people walking their dogs, riding bikes or going to the beach and urged anybody with information to come forward.
Meanwhile Mr Schaefer’s sister has thanked the community on behalf of her family while online GoFundMe donations have poured in.
“We would like to thank all involved on Thursday, our community went above and beyond to help our Kye,” sister Mimi Schaefer wrote on a GoFundMe titled “Kye Schaefer”.
“We will never forget the love and kindness we have been surrounded in since.
“We thank the police for all that they are doing to help us make sense of a senseless situation and their efforts to help us maintain our privacy while we get our heads around this.”
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