Overview
- Benjamin Day, 20, admitted murdering 24-year-old Maria Saceanu and was remanded in custody with a sentencing hearing set for December 4, 2026.
- Prosecutors say Day lured Ms Saceanu to a plastic-lined Airbnb bedroom he had prepared and then stabbed her 78 times, with a Home Office pathologist reporting neck wounds likely fatal and wounds to her hands consistent with defensive action.
- The Crown presented documentary and physical evidence of planning, including a phone 'shopping list' dated November 18 listing knives, plastic sheeting, gloves and other items that were later found at the scene.
- Jurors were told prosecutors consider the killing to be copycat behaviour modelled on the US TV drama Dexter, a point they linked to Day’s transfer to an applied biology and forensics course and to similarities in clothing and room setup.
- West Midlands Police have released body-worn video and scene images that show Day’s arrest and his false account about a wild animal biting his hand, and the case will proceed to sentencing with psychiatric assessments and arguments over aggravating and mitigating factors.