It ended four days later at the Currins’ house on Russell Cres, where Jeffries also attacked their nephew when he came running after hearing the couple’s screams.
Between killing Schiller and the Currins, Jeffries ransacked Schiller’s home to steal money and items to exchange for methamphetamine.
After his arrest, Jeffries told police his “bad side” took over.
The summary said he had become more dependent on methamphetamine and spent a lot of money buying it from Rotorua dealers.
He carried a nylon-handled “Thor” engineering mallet weighing about 2kg in his backpack.
One side of the head was solid lead and the other hard nylon.
How he knew the victims
Jeffries was introduced to Schiller through a family member and the pair associated for weeks before her murder.
The summary of facts said the association became strained as Jeffries made sexual and unwanted comments to her.
He often entered her home uninvited and behaved like he lived there, telling her he wanted to move in.
Schiller told friends she was afraid for her safety and wanted nothing to do with him.
She contacted her landlord about having security cameras installed and started locking her house.
Jessie and Glendon Currin were married for 58 years and lived in their family home on Russell Cres.
Their nephew, Adam Soar, 45, lived in a granny flat on the property.
Jeffries had known the Currins for more than 30 years after meeting through their daughter. They provided guidance, particularly after he returned to New Zealand from Australia.
He regularly visited them for counselling and, recently, to do casual work around the property.
He stayed at their house for a week in August 2024.
The summary said the Currins were trying to get him back on track and in touch with religion.
The first murder
Jeffries went to Schiller’s unit on September 19.
They argued about a comment she made to another person that Jeffries felt belittled him.
When Schiller stood to pass Jeffries, he took the mallet from his backpack and struck her, without warning, in the back of the head.
She collapsed and he bludgeoned her head about 15 to 20 more times.
Police at Michelle Schiller’s Old Taupō Rd address after her body was found. Photo / Ben Fraser
He pushed the head of the mallet against her throat to kill her, but she kept breathing.
Jeffries sat in the next room for about 10 minutes before returning to find Schiller had died.
The summary described the bloodied kitchen scene, which indicated the force of the attack.
What Jeffries did next
Jeffries drove Schiller’s vehicle to an associate’s house nearby.
He walked to the New World Westend supermarket where he bought and stole food.
He walked back to Schiller’s house, where she lay dead, and rifled through her wallet, taking her PayWave bank card.
Over four days, Jeffries and his associates used Schiller’s car and card, racking up more than $6600 in purchases and about $950 in ATM transactions.
In that time, Jeffries went back to her house at least twice a day to look for valuable items, which he swapped for drugs or gave as gifts.
They included jewellery, bedding, clothing, a lawnmower, furniture and food.
The couple’s murders
Jeffries went to the Currins’ house on September 22, carrying the mallet used to kill Schiller in his backpack.
That night he spoke at length with Jessie and Glendon Currin, who tried to provide support and counselling.
In the granny flat, Soar was unaware Jeffries was at the house.
The Currins allowed Jeffries to stay in the bedroom he previously used.
Before going to bed, Jeffries took the mallet and a large knife from his backpack and put them under the bedspread.
Police at the Currins’ Russell Cres property on September 23, 2024. Photo / Ben Fraser
The summary said Jessie went to Jeffries’ bedroom about 5am and resumed a conversation encouraging him to make better choices.
Jeffries took exception to what he later described to police as a “pep talk”.
Without warning, he attacked her with the mallet, striking the back of her head four times, hard and fast.
He also struck her face, breaking her nose.
Her screams woke others at the property.
As Jeffries attacked Glendon in the hallway, Jessie escaped and locked herself in a bedroom before collapsing on the floor.
Jeffries struck Glendon four times hard and fast, causing him to fall semi-conscious to the ground.
Soar rushed into the house and saw Jeffries standing over Glendon with the mallet raised above his head.
Police at the Currins’ Russell Cres property in 2024. Photo / Ben Fraser
The summary said Jeffries charged Soar and struck the back of his head with the mallet.
Soar raised his hands to protect himself, but Jeffries struck his head three more times.
Fighting for his life, Soar pulled Jeffries into a bear hug, wrestling briefly.
When the attacker stumbled, Soar pulled Jeffries’ T-shirt over his head and ran out the front door.
He locked himself and a child at the property in the granny flat and phoned police.
The Currins were taken to Rotorua Hospital in critical condition. Jessie died on October 5 and Glendon Currin on October 9.
Soar was treated in hospital for his wounds and discharged the day of the attack.
Police found Jeffries driving Schiller’s car on Ngongotahā Rd that afternoon.
They arrested him near Mamaku after a short pursuit.
Soon after, police found Schiller’s body in her ransacked home.
The summary said every drawer, cupboard, shelf and possession had been gone through, and contents thrown all over the property.
What Jeffries told police
Jeffries described the murders to police in detail, showing little or no remorse, the summary said.
He said Schiller belittled him in front of a friend and he warned her he would kill her if she spoke to him like that again.
He told police he took exception to Jessie Currin’s “pep talk” and his “bad side” took over.
Jeffries originally pleaded not guilty on grounds of insanity but forensic reports found him fit to plead.
On September 2, he pleaded guilty to wounding Soar with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, burglary of Schiller’s home, unlawfully using her bank card with intent to obtain property and three counts of murder.
He will be sentenced on December 8.
Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for almost 30 years, covering police, court, human interest and social issues.