Jack “Murf the Surf” Murphy, who grew up in Carlsbad and used to be at the back of one of the most greatest jewel heists in U.S. historical past, and in addition won club in a browsing corridor of status and served time for homicide, has died in Florida. He used to be 83.

Jack “Murf the Surf” Murphy, who used to be at the back of one of the most greatest jewel heists in U.S. historical past, won club in a browsing corridor of status and served time for homicide, has died in Florida. He used to be 83.

Murphy’s dying previous this week used to be showed by way of John Hughes, director of the Florida Surf Museum in Cocoa Seaside, Florida, who has been in contact with Murphy’s pals and members of the family. An established good friend, fellow surfer Invoice Yerkes, additionally showed his dying.

Consistent with the New York occasions, Murphy “spent a few of his youth in a disciplinarian family in Carlsbad, California …” Sports activities Illustrated reported {that a} younger Murphy “broke into his Carlsbad … fundamental faculty to take pleasure in ice cream” and {that a} good friend of Murphy’s from that point, John Penrod, stated he as soon as noticed Murphy’s father slap his son as a result of he wasn’t satisfied about how temporarily the boy used to be washing dishes.

Murphy is easiest recognized for a bold heist in 1964 on the American Museum of Herbal Historical past in New York, the place he and different thieves used a rest room window they’d unlocked previous to thieve the famed Megastar of India sapphire — larger than a golfing ball — at the side of different treasured gemstones.

The heist turned into the topic of a 1975 film.

They did not get a long way, with Murphy and the others arrested two days later. Murphy used to be sentenced to 3 years in jail and the Megastar of India used to be present in a locker at a Miami bus station, consistent with reviews on the time.

That wasn’t the tip of Murphy’s prison troubles.

In 1969, he used to be convicted of killing Terry Rae Frank, 24, and sentenced to lifestyles in jail. In 1970, he gained a 2nd lifestyles sentence, plus 20 years, for conspiracy and attack to devote theft in opposition to Olive Wofford. But he used to be paroled in 1986 on account of his non secular awakening and later settled within the quiet Florida west coast the town of Crystal River together with his spouse, Kitten, whilst organising a national jail ministry.

“I discovered God in jail,” Murphy informed the Tampa Bay Instances a couple of years in the past. “Concentrate, I liked the lifestyles. I liked the madness. I liked stealing jewels. It used to be like (actor) Cary Grant, very thrilling, and the folks you stole from at all times had insurance coverage. However I additionally know I used to be out of keep watch over and so I needed to have a brand new supervisor.”

Murphy additionally has said he and others stole from waterfront Miami-area houses, the usage of boats to sidle as much as the rich puts, mountain climbing over partitions and fences to thieve jewellery from the mansions alongside Biscayne Bay. Murphy has stated he would swim off the boat with the jewels in order that if the boat had been stopped by way of government there could be not anything incriminating aboard.

On the time, he used to be known as the Miami cat burglar.

Earlier than all of this, Murphy used to be a championship surfer. Born in California, he established himself at the waves around the nation by way of successful the 1966 East Coast Surfing Championships in Virginia Seaside, Virginia. He gained different titles, resulting in his induction within the East Coast Surfing Corridor of Repute in 1996.

It used to be in Florida the place he were given his nickname, consistent with a put up at the surf corridor of status web site.

“There used to be no surf scene in Florida once I were given there. There have been guys who had surfed up in Daytona on 16-foot paddleboards within the ’20s and ’30s,” Murphy stated within the put up. “However within the ’50s, there used to be no one actually browsing in Florida, so the lifeguards known as me “Murf the Surf.”

He additionally at one level had a industry in Indialantic, Florida, known as “Murf’s Surf Store.” In previous occasions, Murphy attended the College of Pittsburgh on a tennis scholarship and used to be additionally an achieved violinist. The state Division of Corrections as soon as reported he examined at a genius stage on IQ assessments.

Murphy informed the Tampa Bay Instances some time again that he by no means anticipated to get out of jail alive.

“By yourself, you don’t have the energy to care for the blunders of your lifestyles, the evil stuff you’ve executed, the folks you’ve harm,” he stated. “The guilt used to be overwhelming. I felt that I needed to flip all my guilt over to a better energy. I prayed so much and skim scripture about redemption and forgiveness.″

Yerkes, the good friend who may be a championship surfer and lately owns a Florida surf store, stated there used to be not anything false about Murphy.

“He used to be the actual deal. There used to be not anything phony, not anything placed on about him. He used to be actual,” Yerkes stated.