Student murdered personal trainer ‘because he hated women'

Telegraph

28-03-2025

A criminology student stabbed a personal trainer on Bournemouth beach because he hated women, a court heard.
Nasen Saadi, 21, stabbed personal trainer Amie Gray, 34, to death and wounded her friend Leanne Miles in an attack on May 24 last year as the two women chatted by a fire.
The killer had collected knives and researched locations to carry out the killing, and had even asked his course lecturers at the University of Greenwich questions on how to get away with murder.
Saadi, of Croydon, south London, was jailed at Winchester Crown Court for life with a minimum term of 39 years for murder and attempted murder. He was also sentenced for failing to give his mobile phone pin code to police.
The judge, Mrs Justice Cutts, said Saadi 'felt humiliated' after being rejected by girls and women, which 'has led over time to a deeply-suppressed rage towards society and women in particular'.
She added that Saadi had chosen to deny his guilt because he wanted the 'notoriety of a trial' and had a 'complete lack of remorse'.
'The clear evidence is you planned to kill and went to Bournemouth to do so,' the judge said.
'It seems you have felt humiliated and rejected for any advances you have made towards girls which has led over time to a deeply-suppressed rage towards society and women in particular.'
The judge added: 'You chose Amie Gray and Leanne Miles because you had a grievance of society as a whole, and of women.'
Tributes to Amie
In a victim impact statement read to the court, Mrs Gray's wife, Sian Gray, said that her wife's death would 'haunt' her forever.
She said: 'At the age of 36, I should not have to hold my deceased wife's cold hand, nor should my daughter have to say goodbye and grieve over a coffin.
'Our tragedy has been a public display for all to see. In such a small town we have no privacy so cannot hide our grief. That has been taken away from us. Amie's beautiful life has now been reduced to forever being remembered as 'the murder victim'.'
Mrs Gray's mother, Sharon Macklin, said in a statement: 'Amie was an amazing, funny, kind and energetic soul. She had a big smile and a loud laugh and when she entered the room it was filled with laughter and her presence couldn't be ignored. She was beautiful inside and out, even if life wasn't great for her she would always find the time to help others.'
She added that she struggled to sleep and was taking medication and receiving counselling after her daughter's death.
Mrs Gray's aunt, Joy Lawrence, said: 'I see the impact it has had on my husband, daughters and grandchildren, the younger ones only 11 and eight, coping with everyone's grief. They are so distraught that they will never have fun with her again.'
The trial heard that Saadi was 'fascinated' with knives and had bought six blades from websites, with several found at his aunt's house, where he was living, and at his parents' home.
Saadi used the name 'Ninja Killer' for his Snapchat account and also used the username 'NSkills' on his computer. He had also carried out searches about the Milly Dowler and Brianna Ghey killings.
The court was told Saadi had booked two hotels for a four-night stay in Bournemouth starting May 21 and was shown on CCTV carrying out 'recces' of the seafront and the scene of the murder, which happened at about 11.40pm on May 24.
During his stay at the Dorset resort, the defendant went to the cinema to see 'slasher' movie The Strangers: Chapter 1.
His trial was told Ms Gray had tried to distract Saadi while he was attacking Ms Miles, shouting 'get away', allowing her friend to flee.
Saadi's tutors told the nine-day trial that he had shown a 'degree of specific interest in matters not related to the subject of his lectures' and 'plied' them with questions relating to forensics, DNA, self defence and policing.
One academic, Lisa-Maria Reiss, described Saadi asking her questions on 'how to get away with murder' before asking her 'how often' a self-defence argument would 'go through' if a 'person was attacked first'.
His questions prompted her to ask him 'You're not planning a murder are you?' - to which Saadi did not respond.
Saadi, who chose not to give evidence, denied carrying out the attacks saying it was a case of mistaken identity and adding that he must have 'blacked out' when they happened.
Benjamin May, a senior crown prosecutor with CPS Wessex, said: 'Amie's courageous final act to protect her friend truly defines who she was, and her life will forever be remembered for the love and protection she gave to her loved ones.
'Our thoughts continue to remain with her friends and family, as well as with Leanne Miles, whose bravery through this ordeal helped us to deliver justice.
'Saadi's perverse fascination with murder and violence morphed into vile, real-world consequences, for which he has faced justice.'
Det Insp Mark Jenkins, of Dorset Police, added: 'We were able to show how carefully the defendant planned his attack, intending to kill, choosing Bournemouth – somewhere he had never been before – as the location seemingly purely because it had a sandy beach and how he travelled down several days before with the intention of committing this horrific act.
'It appears that he targeted Amie and Leanne, who he had never met and were simply enjoying a peaceful evening on the beach, just because he saw an opportunity to surprise and overpower them.
'I want to again thank Amie's family and Leanne for the support they have provided throughout the investigation and court process and the dignified way they have conducted themselves during this extremely difficult period for them all.'
'Infamy became the goal'
Charles Sherrard KC, defending, said that Saadi had 'recognised his guilt' after his conviction and 'demonstrated a willingness to receive therapy'.
He added: 'He is a social misfit, someone who had hardly any friends at school, never had a girlfriend and seemed to be somebody who was avoided rather than somebody's mate.
'The fact of that was to provide him with significantly low esteem and general sense of inadequacy.'
He said that Saadi compensated by 'obsessing' over horror films and was fascinated by the mind of a psychopath and had a 'growing sense of rage against society for the rejection'.
Mr Sherrard continued: 'Infamy became a valid goal in itself.
'Without using the words of a psychologist, without anything from a thesaurus, what it comes down to, in the words of the defendant 'I never got noticed when I did a good thing, people have only noticed when I did a bad thing' and that's perhaps the nearest one can get to an explanation.'