Murray Sakey: Online book sellers drop ex-Kelston Boys’ teacher’s novels after sex crimes
Novels written by retired teacher and author Murray Sakey have been cut from three online book retailers’ websites after a jury found him guilty of sexually abusing two boys.
The former Kelston Boys’ High School teacher, who wrote under the pen name Morgan Bruce, published novels with Strategic Book Publishing.
His novels range from fantasy to mystery. One, titled Prague: An Unforgettable Story of Betrayal and Redemption, features an 11-year-old boy caught up in “a major child prostitution operation across Europe”.
Retailers including The Nile, Woolworths’ Big W, and Mighty Ape stocked novels written by Sakey.
After a jury found Sakey guilty in September of abusing two boys, the Heraldapproached the retailers about the books they were selling.
The Nile told the Heraldit had “no knowledge of the author’s criminal history or wrongdoing”.
“The book was listed under the pseudonym Morgan Bruce, which made it difficult to identify the connection to Murray Sakey,” the retailer said.
“We have immediately removed the listing for Hunters Choice and blocked all books associated with this author from sale on The Nile.”
A Woolworths spokesperson said it removed Sakey’s book from sale as soon as it became aware of the situation.
“This product was listed on Big W Marketplace by a third-party merchant.”
The Heraldunderstands no copies of any of his books ever sold through Woolworths or the Big W platform.
Mighty Ape said all titles by Sakey (under his pseudonym Morgan Bruce) had been removed.
Strategic Book Publishing has been approached for comment.
The trial
A Heraldstory in 2024 on Sakey’s earlier convictions for possessing child exploitation material prompted two sexual abuse victims to come forward.
During the 2026 trial, Sakey accepted he was attracted to children, had undertaken shirtless photoshoots with one of the victims and slept in a bed with both boys, but denied sexually abusing them.
The jury was not convinced and Sakey was found guilty of seven indecency charges, but acquitted of one count of threatening to kill.
He is in prison awaiting sentencing after being found guilty in September of sexually abusing two teenage boys in the 1990s.
Katie Harris is an Auckland-based journalist who covers issues such as sexual assault, workplace misconduct, media, crime and justice. She joined the Herald in 2020.
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