The jury in the case of Nasen Saadi, 20, who is accused of killing Amie Gray, 34, has heard how he would often ask his criminology lecturer questions about ‘how to get away with murder’
A lecturer who taught a criminology student accused of ‘butchering’ a personal trainer to death today said he’d often ask questions on ‘how to get away with murder’.
Academic Lisa-Maria Reiss said the questions asked by Nasen Saadi were ‘not focused’ on the topics discussed and recalled one example where he asked whether ‘police were able to trace back DNA’. It was heard Saadi, 20, also asked ‘how often’ a self defence argument would ‘go through’ if a ‘person was attacked first’.
Saadi, a criminology student, is accused of stabbing sport coach Amie Gray to death and attacking a second woman Leanne Miles in a ‘horrifyingly savage’ incident on Durley Chine beach in Bournemouth, Dorset, on May 24 this year. The tutor told jurors she asked him ‘You’re not planning a murder are you?’ to which he told her he was just carrying out research for an article he wanted to write.
Recalling her first interaction with Saadi between 2022 and 2023, Ms Reiss told Winchester Crown Court, Hants, she was teaching a lecture on political structures at the University of Greenwich.
“I usually end a lecture saying are there any questions,” she said. “[Saadi] said can you please go back to the point you were talking about murder or self defence.
“He was sat at the back of the room, he joined late so he stood out to me because I do know people in the class. He was wearing big red headphones and removed them at the end to ask the question. It was the first interaction I have ever had with him, the first time I have seen him on campus.
“I looked around the classroom and I saw that my students were very confused at this question. I said I can’t remember up that topic. From what I remember, he completely ignored that and then he asked again about if self defence and how often it would go through if a person was attacked first.”
The lecturer told jurors he would often ask questions on murder, DNA and forensics. “I said we have a policing lecture where someone from the police would come in and talk about the topic in more detail and he continued to ask the question,” Ms Reiss said.
“He asked me what DNA is left behind and if police were able to trace back DNA and I said yes they are fairly competent in that. He ignored that, it was almost like he didn’t listen.
“I said to him, you’re not planning a murder are you? He said no, he’s researching for an article he wants to write for a paper.”
Ms Reiss said that from this point, the questions became ‘more frequent’ but the ‘subject’ of them ‘changed’. She told of a lecture with a police officer on November 20 about the ‘work life balance’ of a job in the forces.
“The one that stood out to me was the policing lecture,” Ms Reiss said. “He asked if different police departments in different area’s communicated with each other, if they exchanged cases in evidence and from what I remember, he also asked how far someone would have to travel to get away with certain offences.
“He asked about investigations, line of enquiry and so fourth. The questions were not necessarily focused on anything to do with career, anything to do with life of a police officer. It was from the other side. It was DNA, how to get away with murder, these sorts of things which were very different to other questions.”
Saadi took inspiration from ‘high profile’ stabbings like that of Brianna Ghey’s when he carried out the attack, prosecutors said. The student, from south London, used the internet to search for ‘deliberately offensive-looking weapons’ and researched ‘busiest beaches’ before settling on a location in Bournemouth.
He has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Mrs Gray and attempted murder of Ms Miles. He has accepted a charge of failing to comply with a notice requirement disclosure.
The trial continues.