A criminology student is facing trial after allegedly murdering a woman and injuring another in a brutal, random attack.
Nasen Saadi, 20, from Croydon, is accused of killing 34-year-old Amie Gray and stabbing 38-year-old Leanne Miles on May 24, 2024, at Durley Chine Beach in Bournemouth.
Prosecutors told Winchester Crown Court that Saadi had spent a month planning the attack, driven by a chilling desire to understand what it felt like to take someone’s life.
Prosecutor Sarah Jones KC told the jury, “It seems he wanted to know what it would feel like to take life—perhaps to feel powerful, perhaps to make women feel afraid, or perhaps he just couldn’t bear to see people happy and decided to lash out.”
According to the prosecution, Saadi approached the victims as they sat by a fire on the beach and attacked them with stealth and precision.
He allegedly stabbed both women multiple times, chasing them as they tried to escape. Amie Gray was tragically pronounced dead at the scene, while Leanne Miles, though severely wounded, survived the attack.
Further evidence presented in court revealed that Saadi had been researching murder methods weeks before the attack.
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He reportedly searched terms like “deadliest knife,” “machete,” and “how to avoid CCTV” online.
In criminology classes at the University of Greenwich, Saadi raised unsettling questions about forensic evidence and justifying murder, leading his lecturer to ask, “You’re not planning a murder, are you?” Saadi reportedly gave no response.
Saadi had also booked a hotel room in Bournemouth just days before the attack. The court heard that he watched The Strangers – Chapter 1, a violent film about a stabbing, which prosecutors suggest may have inspired his actions.
Leanne, who survived the attack, recalled hearing Amie’s cries for help as she tried to escape. Despite her desperate pleas for Saadi to stop, he continued to stab her, leaving her severely injured.
Saadi then fled the scene, attempting to erase all evidence of his crime.