The family of Steven Murphy, a 38-year-old homeless man murdered in Adelaide’s northern outskirts, has confronted his killer in court.
Keith Yandle, who was found guilty of the fatal shooting of Murphy on his property in Kudla in 2023, was described by the victim’s family as a “heartless pig.”
“I couldn’t believe that such a disgusting organism exists on the face of the earth,” Sean Murphy, Steven’s uncle, said.
“That’s all I can describe him as, I wouldn’t describe him as a man.”
“He should go away for the rest of life and die, hopefully as an old man in jail so he can suffer for all of those years,” he added.
“Death would be too good for him.”
Murphy’s mother shared her emotional victim impact statement, expressing disbelief that one of her children could vanish, with no more hugs or declarations of ‘I love you.’ She lamented that “two years have passed and the pain remains unrelenting.”
Yandle only spoke during a brief outburst from the dock, where he repeatedly shouted and accused the prosecutors of misrepresenting his intentions regarding the crime.
Murphy had been sleeping rough on Yandle’s property when he was shot four times at close range. The court heard that Murphy was unarmed and cowering at the time of the shooting.
Yandle subsequently buried Murphy’s body beneath a shed used for growing cannabis.
Yandle’s defence lawyer maintained that his client’s intent to murder only lasted a few seconds.
He will be sentenced in July.
