Criminology student Nasen Saadi guilty of murder after stabbing woman 10 times on Bournemouth beach
A criminology student has been found guilty of the murder and attempted murder of two women on a beach in Bournemouth.
Nasen Saadi, 20, from Croydon, fatally stabbed personal trainer Amie Gray, 34, 10 times as she sat beside a fire on Durley Chine Beach in Dorset on the evening of 24 May.
Her friend Leanne Miles, who was sitting next to her on the beach, suffered 20 knife injuries but survived the attack.
Following the verdict at Winchester Crown Court, Mrs Gray’s wife, Sian, thanked police and the emergency services for helping her and bringing “the justice that she deserves”.
She said in a statement: “Amie will never be forgotten. She touched the lives of so many. The immense support and love shown by everyone, reflects just that.
“Amie’s life has been brutally taken but now she can rest in peace. Her strength lives on in all of us.”
The trial heard how Saadi, who was studying criminology at Greenwich University in London, was asked by one of his lecturers: “You’re not planning a murder, are you?”
Nasen Saadi. Pic: Dorset Police
He had asked teachers questions about self-defence for murder and how long DNA stays behind.
Saadi told detectives he had an interest in true crime, unsolved cases and horror movies.
It can now be reported Saadi touched himself while in his prison cell ahead of the trial after he asked a female prison officer how much publicity the case was getting.
Sarah Jones KC, prosecuting, had argued in court the jury should hear this account as it provided a possible motive for the attack but the judge ruled it was prejudicial so could not be used as evidence.
And in February an allegation of stalking was made against Saadi, which led the Metropolitan Police to refer itself to the police watchdog over its handling of the incident.
During the trial, the jury heard how in the days leading up to the attack Saadi had checked into a Travelodge in Bournemouth before moving to a different hotel.
Amie Gray (left) and her wife Sian. Pic: Handout/Dorset Police
He went to a cinema to watch The Strangers – Chapter 1, described by the prosecution as a slasher movie where the male and female leads both get stabbed.
Ms Jones said: “It suggests, doesn’t it, that the defendant gravitated to what he likes to watch or sought inspiration or encouragement from what he saw.”
The jury was shown CCTV footage which the prosecution said showed Saadi walking along the beach promenade.
A man said to be Nasen Saadi walking along Durley Chine Beach in Bournemouth, and a map of the location
A CCTV audio recording was also played for the jury of screaming and a male voice at around 11.39pm – the time of the attack.
Ms Jones told the jury Saadi left the victims on the sand “to bleed to death” while he moved away and tried to disappear “back into the shadows”.
The judge, Mrs Justice Cutts, adjourned the case for a psychiatric report to be prepared on the defendant before sentencing on 28 March.
CCTV still of Saadi.
Pic: CPS
She told the defendant: “You have been convicted of the most serious of crimes, there is only one sentence that can follow that verdict of this jury and that is a sentence of imprisonment for life.
“You should be under no illusion, the minimum term in this case will be of considerable length but I need to know more before I make that decision.”
‘I am getting dizzy, please hurry up’
A recording of a 999 call made by Ms Miles was played to the court in which she was heard crying in pain.
The 39-year-old told the operator: “I have been stabbed loads of times. Oh my God, I am getting dizzy, please hurry up, please hurry up.”
She continues: “I am bleeding everywhere, I have been stabbed loads of times.”
The clothes Saadi was wearing during the attack and the weapon used were never recovered.
Amie Gray. Pic: Handout/Dorset Police
Defendant claimed he ‘blacked out’
The defendant, who chose not to give evidence, admitted visiting Bournemouth but denied the offences.
He told police he might have “blacked out” and had no memory of the period that included the attacks.
Analysis of Saadi’s laptop showed that since January 2024 there were searches about murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler and her killer Levi Bellfield, as well as Brianna Ghey and her killers.
Saadi used the name “Ninja Killer” for his Snapchat account and also used the username “NSkills” on his computer.
There were also multiple visits to websites selling knives and searches for “why do criminals get away with crimes in rural areas” and “why is it harder for a criminal to get caught if he does it in another town”.
During searches of his bedroom at his aunt’s home where he was living, police found five knives, including a machete and an ornamental knife, as well as a self-defence spray.
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Officers also seized a blue Trespass rucksack which contained white latex gloves, two of which were inside out, a black balaclava, a torch and used wet wipes.
In a police interview shown in court, Saadi said: “I am not responsible and I have no reason to attack someone for no reason.”
Asked where he was at the time of the attack, he replied “no comment” and when asked if he was the person in the CCTV footage, he replied: “Beaches are popular places… many people… CCTV shows there were many people walking, it’s not just one person.”
Suggesting a motive for the attack, Ms Jones said: “This defendant seems to have wanted to know what it would be like to take life, perhaps he wanted to know what it would be like to make women feel afraid, perhaps he thought it would make him feel powerful, make him interesting to others.
“Perhaps he just couldn’t bear to see people engaged in a happy, normal social interaction and he decided to lash out, to hurt, to butcher.”
Saadi pleaded guilty to failing to provide his mobile phone code to police.
UK
Headteacher Justine Drury banned after school trip where ‘girl was blackmailed into sex and students drank’
The Met Office has released its forecast for Christmas Day, and it says there will be no white Christmas this year.
The nation’s weather service says that pressure will build as the festive day approaches and on 25 December there are likely to be settled conditions, mild in many places.
The Met Office’s Dan Harris said: “Christmas Day itself is likely to be settled, often cloudy, and dry with light winds for the majority.
“Once again, the far north may be windier, with a small chance of further rain across northwest Scotland.
“Temperatures are expected to be widely mild, so if you are hoping for a blanket of snow across the country on Christmas Day, I’m sorry to say you will be disappointed.”
But they said it is still too early to be certain, and that they will provide updates in the coming days.
Get the forecast for your area
For the Met Office to declare a white Christmas, a single snowflake must be observed falling in the 24 hours of Christmas Day by either an official Met Office observer or a Met Office automated weather station.
While 2023 was technically a white Christmas, with 11% of weather stations recording snowfall, the last widespread one with snow settling on the ground was more than ten years ago.
The UK has only seen widespread snow coverage on Christmas four times since 1960 – in 1981, 1995, 2009 and 2010.
Yellow wind warning before Christmas
Before then, however, some parts of the UK are set to be hit by high winds with the Met Office issuing yellow weather warnings.
It says that in parts of Scotland, very strong westerly winds are expected on Saturday in association with a deep area of low pressure.
A yellow weather warning for Saturday 21 December. Pic: Met Office
Gusts are expected to reach 65-75mph in the Western Isles and Orkney and there is a small chance some will reach 80mph.
One warning also covers the west coast of Scotland and the north coast of Northern Ireland. In these areas, gusts between 50-60mph could develop widely.
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The Met Office said the conditions have “the potential to cause delays to public transport and some disruption to the road network, which may have a greater than usual impact given the busier pre-Christmas weekend travel”.
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