Overview
- A jury at Preston Crown Court found Nathan Owens guilty of murder and of causing grievous bodily harm on Thursday, October 22, 2026, after about three hours of deliberation.
- Prosecutors said Owens drove from the family home in Hartlepool to Carla Georgescu’s halls in the early hours, assaulted her, and staged the scene to look like suicide; CCTV and telematics were central to placing him at the flat and to locating discarded evidence.
- Digital forensics presented at trial showed hundreds of covert photos, doctored images, and recordings including sexualised material and footage of an effigy, which prosecutors said demonstrated a persistent sexual fixation on the victim.
- Owens did not give evidence at trial and the judge told jurors they could draw inferences from his silence; he had previously admitted counts relating to making indecent images of the victim and will be sentenced on Friday.
- Carla Georgescu was a second‑year clinical psychology student with plans to travel to Romania, and investigators and police say the case highlights how CCTV, vehicle telematics and device forensics can overturn an apparent suicide and expose concealed abuse.