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Stephen Raynor HORN

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Stephen Raynor HORN  APM  

the Longest ever Serving Crime Scene Officer in NSW Police Forensic history ( 2024 )

 

AKA Steve HORN  

* Nickname:  Cracker

Late of Sutherland, NSW 

 

Relations in ‘the job’Special Constable Aaron HORN – NSWPF – Security Management Branch

 

“possible” relation in ‘the job‘:

Colin Ernest HORN, NSWPF # 9223   ? 

G.H. HORN, NSWPF # 16258   ? 

Dennis HORN, NSWPF # ????, Cadet 2253 ( 1967 )   ? 

J.G. HORN, NSWPF # 22121   

 

NSW Police Training Centre – Redfern  –  Class # 115  

 

New South Wales Police Force

 

Regd. #  13273  

 

Rank:  Commenced Training at Redfern Police Academy on Monday 13 May 1968 ( aged 19 years, 2 months, 1 day ) 

Probationary Constable- appointed Monday 24 June 1968 ( aged 19 years, 3 months, 12 days ) 

Constable – appointed 24 June 1969 

Constable 1st Class – appointed 24 June 1973

Detective – appointed ? ? ? ( YES )  

Senior Constable – appointed  24 June 1977

Leading Senior Constable – appointed ? ? ? ( N/A )  

Sergeant 3rd Class – appointed 31 August 1984

Sergeant 2nd Class – appointed ? ? ?  

Sergeant 1st Class – appointed ? ? ?

 

Final Rank: = Detective Senior Sergeant

 

Stations ?, Hurstville Scientific ( 31 Division ), ?, Ex War Crimes Investigator, Special Operations – Forensic Services Group – Identifications Services Branch ( DNA Advancement Program ), Forensic Intelligence & Results Management – Retirement

  

Time employed ( Paid ) with NSW PoliceFrom:  13 May 1968   to  29 September 2018= 50 years, 4 months, 16 days

Service ( From Training Date ) period: From  13 May 1968    to     29 September 2018 = 50 years, 4 months, 16 days Service 

( 44 years in Crime Scene )

 

 

Retirement / Leaving age: =  69 years, 6 months, 17 days

Time in Retirement from Police:  5 years, 8 months, 10 days

 

Awards:  National Medal – granted 29June 1984 ( Det SenCon )

1st Clasp to National Medal – granted 7 May 1994 ( Det SenCon )

Australian Police Medal ( APM ) – granted 26 January 2016 ( Det SenSgt )

 

 

 Born:  Saturday 12 March 1949

Died on:   Saturday 8 June 2024

Age:  75 years, 2 months, 27 days

Organ Donor:  Y / N / ?

 

Cause:   Cancer – Bladder ( Renal – Kidney failure )   

* Stage 4 Ureter Epithelial Cancer

Health Cluster from his FSG work

* Stage 4 Ureter Epithelial Cancer (also known as Stage 4 Urothelial Carcinoma of the Renal Pelvis and Ureter) is a cancer that spreads to distant organs, such as the lungs, liver, or bones, or has metastasized to lymph nodes far from the original tumor.
It is considered advanced and has a poorer prognosis than earlier stages.
 

Event location:   ?

Diagnosis date:  shortly after Retiring

 

Funeral date:  Wednesday 19 June 2024 @ 11am 

Funeral location:  South Chapel, Woronora Memorial Park, 121 Linden St, Sutherland, NSW

Forensic Evidence & Technical Services Command will provide an Official Police Guard of Honour 

 

Wake location???

Wake date???

 

 

Funeral ParlourPersonal Farewells, 135 Princes Hwy, Heathcote, NSW

 

Buried at?

Grave LocationSection:          Row?         Plot?

Grave GPS?,       ?

 

Memorial / Plaque / Monument located at ?

Dedication date of Memorial / Plaque / Monument: Nil – at this time ( June 2024 )

 

STEVE is NOT mentioned on the Police Wall of Remembrance * NOT JOB RELATED

 


 

FURTHER INFORMATION IS NEEDED ABOUT THIS PERSON, THEIR LIFE, THEIR CAREER AND THEIR DEATH.

PLEASE SEND PHOTOS AND INFORMATION TO Cal


 

May they forever Rest In Peace

https://www.facebook.com/groups/AustralianPolice.com.au/ 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/NSWFallenPolice/ 

Australian Police YouTube Channel


 

Stephen Horn

12th March 1949 – 8th June 2024

Always loved, never forgotten, forever missed.

FUNERAL SERVICE DETAILS

Wednesday 19th June 2024 at 11am (AEST)

Family and friends are warmly invited to the farewell service for Stephen at Woronora Memorial Park, South Chapel.

The service can be viewed via the following live stream link from 11am. A recording of the service will also be available for download after the service has concluded.

Link: https://streaming.naoca.com.au/e/cb2f1b9c-c897-4ede-b771-8fb716b1ba45

PIN: 6389

 


NSW Police , Thought to share this – Remember those Nightshifts and early morning crime scene’s when Detective Senior Sergeant Steve Horn arrived. It was a matter of “who was in charge til I got here”..
A career spanning more than 50 years, there isn’t much this cop hasn’t seen.
Detective Senior Sergeant Stephen Horn has investigated and solved some of the highest-profile crimes and disasters in Australia, and across the world.
Courtesy of Colin Walsh.

 


 

Granville train to war crimes: Hero cop’s 50 years on the front lines

 

 

 

From the Granville train disaster to the long search for Matthew Leveson’s remains, there isn’t much Detective Sergeant Stephen Horn hasn’t done in more than 50 years with NSW Police.
The veteran is hanging up his badge and hopes to spend more time with his family, and he spoke to A Current Affair about his career and the cases that have stayed with him.
“I’ve always tried to give more than 100 percent – as I say to some young people, get down and get dirty,” Det Sgt Horn said.
Stephen Raynor HORN 02 - NSWPF - 13273 - Died 8 June 2024
Detective Sergeant Stephen Horn is retiring after more than 50 years with NSW Police. (A Current Affair)

He joined the force in 1968, and for 44 years of his career he has been on the front line of crime scenes gathering any clue that might unravel a crime.

“Who else is going to speak for (the deceased) if not the police?” he said.
But despite his long career, he admitted the burden could be a heavy one.
Stephen Raynor HORN 01 - NSWPF - 13273 - Died 8 June 2024
Det Sgt Horn joined the force in 1968. (A Current Affair)
“I try not to take the work home and think about it at home, because if I worry about it and freak out and think about it, I’ll end up making mistakes,” he said.
“Multiple murders where a family has been murdered and children were involved – you always think to yourself, ‘why the children?'”
Det Sgt Horn was a fresh-faced, young forensic officer when a train derailed at Granville in Sydney in 1977.
Stephen Raynor HORN 03 - NSWPF - 13273 - Died 8 June 2024
Det Sgt Horn was one of the forensic officers on the scene at the Granville train disaster in 1977. (A Current Affair)

 

His job was to retrieve the 83 victims who died, and identify them.
“We had a temporary morgue put up in a large tent and when portions of the concrete from the roadway were actually moved off the carriages, we would go down and retrieve the bodies and take them up to the morgue, do an initial examination of them, photograph them, look at their injuries, look at their clothing,” he said.
It was far from the last disaster scene Det Sgt Horn would attend.
Stephen Raynor HORN 04 - NSWPF - 13273 - Died 8 June 2024
The forensic officers did their work at Granville in a temporary morgue in a large tent. (A Current Affair)

 

He also carried out his duties at the 1981 Sylvania Nursing Home fire (19 dead), the 1989 Kempsey bus crash (35 dead).
And in 1991, he received a phone call that shaped his career.
Det Sgt Horn was called on to investigate war crimes in Ukraine, where he dug up two mass graves and exhumed the remains of dozens of World War II victims – including 20 children.

 

Stephen Raynor HORN 05 - NSWPF - 13273 - Died 8 June 2024
Assistant Commissioner Peter Cotter with Det Sgt Horn who hopes to spend more time with his wife and granddaughter in retirement. (A Current Affair)

 

“When we started to exhume these remains, we could actually see they were almost all grouped in an area – little tiny baby remains and things like that,” he said.
“Why did this happen? Why were these children taken from this village when the information was they didn’t know if they were Jews or not? They just decided to take them and dispose of them.”
He spent three months in the trenches, with minimal food and supplies.

 

Stephen Raynor HORN 06 - NSWPF - 13273 - Died 8 June 2024
Det Sgt Horn has also been called upon to investigate war crimes in Ukraine. (A Current Affair)

 

Back home, the evolution of DNA technology has allowed Det Sgt Horne to solve cases that were otherwise impossible to crack.
“I think we had about 27 sexual assault cases solved with DNA, with about 33 charges – some of them serial offenders,” he said.
Most recently, Det Sgt Horn’s experience played an integral role in finding Matthew Leveson’s remains, 10 years after he went missing.

 

Stephen Raynor HORN 07 - NSWPF - 13273 - Died 8 June 2024
Det Sgt Horn exhumed the remains of dozens of WWII victims, including children. (A Current Affair)

 

It is a gift Matthew’s parents Mark and Faye Leveson could never repay.
“He helped bring our Matty home and without that, we might still be out there looking for him, so a massive thank-you isn’t enough,” Faye Leveson said.
Assistant Commissioner Peter Cotter commended Det Sgt Horn’s service.
Stephen Raynor HORN 08 - NSWPF - 13273 - Died 8 June 2024
Most recently, Det Sgt Horn played an integral role in finding the remains of Matthew Leveson. (A Current Affair)

 

“The NSW Police Force is extremely proud of you, we wish you the very best in retirement, and please go and enjoy yourself, and thank you for 50 years,” he said.
And Det Sgt Horn himself had one message for the new generation of young police officers.
“Be professional, diligent, loyal, courteous, and don’t give up,” he said.

Granville train to Matthew Leveson: Cop’s 50 years on the front lines


Stephen Raynor HORN 02 - NSWPF - 13273 - Died 8 June 2024

Stephen Raynor HORN 02 - NSWPF - 13273 - Died 8 June 2024

Stephen Raynor HORN 02 - NSWPF - 13273 - Died 8 June 2024

Stephen Raynor HORN 02 - NSWPF - 13273 - Died 8 June 2024

 


 

* Story behind any Nickname:

 


 

Email Received from another NSWPF Member:
This renal cancer is a real bitch.
There are three other ex-Forensics guys from Sydney who have the same problem.
One appears to have beaten it, but two others’ prognoses are very poor.
I worked with them all over the years.
I’m going to get a kidney health check next week, as are a few other former Forensics work mates.

 


 

Nothing further, than what is recorded above, is known about this person at the time of publication and further information and photos would be appreciated.

**********

 

Cal
14 June 2024


 

 

3 thoughts on “Stephen Raynor HORN

  • Mick Newall (21663 HOD)

    A true professional and always a gentleman.

    Reply
  • Joined the job with Steve, always a great person to have a chat with. He served with distinction and helped find closure for many families during his long investigative career. Sadly his retirement was cut short due to illness. My condolences to his wife and family, and may he rest in peace. Peter C

    Reply
  • What a top Police officer. I first met Steve in the early 80’s when Forensic Services were called Scientific Investigation Section. An extremely talented operator. I can’t speak more highly of this man.

    As outlined, he investigated some of the most terrible, serious events/crimes in Australia and overseas.

    Years later I saw him at Police HQs Parramatta. Always impeccably dressed, continuing his outstanding ability in solving crimes.

    I was deeply saddened by his passing and so soon after his retirement from a distinguished career.

    My thoughts go out to Steve’s family.

    May Detective Senior Sergeant Stephen Raynor Horn (rtd) forever rest in eternal peace.

    Reply

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