‘Not planning a murder, are you?’ How true crime fanatics are ‘using criminology degrees to inspire sick killings’

CRIMINOLOGY student Nasen Saadi had long been obsessed with true crime, horror movies and death.

His fascination was to such an extent that he would quiz his lecturers at London's Greenwich University about how to get away with killing.

It prompted one professor to ask: “You're not planning a murder, are you?”

In fact, he was. Saadi had spent months meticulously plotting a heinous crime before executing the sick plan in May last year.

Saadi, 20, stabbed 34-year-old Amie Gray to death on Durley Chine Beach inBournemouthas she screamed, “Get off me.”

He also stabbed Amie's pal Leanne Miles, leaving her seriously injured, as the pair chatted next to a fire to keep warm.

Before the horror attack, CCTV showed the monster on a “recce” mission, prowling the beach at night dressed in dark clothes.

Four days later, he would carry out the sick act described as “horrifying in its savagery and in its randomness”.

Their screams were captured on CCTV as he stabbed them multiple times, leaving the pair bleeding on the sand as he shrank into the shadows.

In a harrowing 999 call, Leanne was heard crying out in pain as she told the operator: “I have been stabbed loads of times. Oh my god, I am getting dizzy, please hurry up, please hurry up.”

She continued: “Oh, I feel sick, they need to be quicker, I am in so much pain, are you still there, please do not leave me.

“I am bleeding everywhere, I have been stabbed loads of times.”

The murder investigation subsequently revealed Saadi had “an unfathomable desire to carry out a murder”.

He was fascinated by knives – calling himself “Ninja killer” onSnapchat– and carried out chilling searches forBrianna Ghey‘s murder and serial killer Levi Bellfield.

Now Saadi has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 39 years for “butchering” Ms Gray to death.

But his shocking case is worryingly not an anomaly.

Instead, it bears an eerie resemblance to other horrific murder cases across the UK over the last decade, where murder-obsessed students have taken criminology courses to hone their understanding of the art of killing.

The “Crossbow Cannibal”, Stephen Griffiths and the murder of Julia Rawson both involve killers who either had studied or were studying criminology.

Griffiths was handed a whole-life order in 2010 for the “wicked and monstrous” murders of three women in Bradford.

He had researched murders in Bradford in the 19th century as part of a thesis during his criminology degree at university.

In 2019, Nathan Maynard-Ellis, 30, and his boyfriend, David Leesley, 25, brutally butchered Julia in Dudley, West Midlands.

Maynard-Ellis was a criminology student, with crime scene photos released by police after their sentencing showing a bookcase filled with a mass of true crime books.

Criminology professor David Wilson spoke exclusively to Flying Eze and said some murder fantasists will begin studying the subject to “gather tips” on how to carry out a killing.

He also revealed that he had been forced to censor details about certain crimes in his teachings to not “inspire the wrong sorts of learning”.

Criminology does not – repeat, does not – teach students to become better killers. However, the reality is that a very small number might choose to study the subject almost as if they’re gathering murderous tips

David WilsonCriminology professor

He told Flying Eze: “Criminology has always been theoretical as well as an applied discipline.

“To become a Criminologist, a student needs to understand the various philosophical concepts that underpin the subject, as well as how a criminological understanding might be applied in ‘real life' about the commission of crime and what we can do about it to reduce offending in the community.

“Criminology does not – repeat, does not – teach students to become better killers.

“However, the reality is that a very small number might choose to study the subject almost as if they’re gathering murderous tips.

“It has meant that in my own teaching, public talks and writing, I now very consciously self-censor the information that I’m prepared to divulge, just in case what I’m saying inspires the wrong sorts of learning.”

Addressing the case of Crossbow Cannibal Griffiths, Mr Wilson said his “consolation” that the killer's study of criminology was “unusual” has now been shattered.

He added: “I took some consolation in believing that Griffiths and his study of criminology was simply unusual and unique – an odd personal characteristic, rather than something to be unduly concerned about.

“Lots of murderers, I reasoned, might become fascinated with true crime, but it was rare to want to study criminology to accompany that obsession.

“That comfort was shattered in 2019 with the murder of Julia Rawson.”

On top of notorious cases in the UK, Mr Wilson also pointed to similarly horrific events in the US.

Lots of murderers, I reasoned, might become fascinated with true crime,but it was rare to want to study criminology to accompany that obsession. That comfort was shattered in 2019 with the murder of Julia Rawson.

David WilsonCriminology professor

Serial killer Dennis Rader, who became known as “BTK” (Bind, Torture, Kill), murdered 10 people – all while taunting police with detailed letters about his gruesome murders.

Rader had studied for a degree in the Administration of Justice, an offshoot of criminology popular with American students who want to work in law enforcement.

Golden State Killer Joseph DeAngelo committed 12 murders and at least 50 rapes across California from 1976 to 1986.

The serial killer had a degree in Criminal Justice and had worked as a police officer in the 1970s.

Bryan Kohberger is currently charged with four counts of murder after allegedly stabbing to death four University of Idaho students at their off-campus house.

Kohberger is a former criminal justice student at Washington State University

Police even uncovered a college essay written by Kohberger that showed he knew his way around a crime scene, according to court files.

He mentioned fiber-free overalls, shoe covers, gloves, hair nets and more when talking about protective gear an investigator should wear to avoid contaminating a scene.

His trial is expected to start later this year.

Mr Wilson's concerns come after he detailed how the topic of hitmen fascinates Brits – even though we “abhor” and “condemn” it.

We shone a light on the terrifying world of the British hitman, including an unassuming bar worker and a shadowy “master” lurking in the darkest corner of Britain's criminal underbelly.

The professor interviewed a real hitman while conducting his research and found their reality was “far seedier and shabbier” than how the media portrays it.

He told Flying Eze: “British hitmen, and I uncovered only one hitwoman – a Maori working in a bar in London called Te Rangimaria Ngarimu – did not occupy a life of international travel, intrigue or espionage but something far seedier and shabby.

“These men were often driven to offering lethal violence as a commodity because they were down on their luck, had recently been divorced, made redundant, had debts, or were facing bankruptcy.

“A casual remark down the pub about being willing to ‘do anything for a few quid' could take someone on a journey that they were usually ill-equipped to accept, and so they often ended up dead themselves, having abjectly failed to end their target’s life.”

Mr Wilson concluded the research pointed to four different types of UK hitmen – Dilletantes, Novices, Journeymen and Masters.