Dexter-obsessed student ‘murdered sex worker in copycat kill room’ at Airbnb

Police at the scene in Barncroft Road in Oldbury after Maria Saceanu’s killing (Picture: BPM Media)

A forensics student obsessed with US TV drama Dexter stabbed a sex worker to death in a copycat ‘kill room’ he set up in an Airbnb, a court has been told.

Benjamin William Day, 19, inflicted 78 knife wounds on Maria Saceanu and starting to dismember her body in the room he had ‘prepared’ at rented premises in the West Midlands, his murder trial heard.

Prosecutor Rachel Brand KC told jurors at Wolverhampton Crown Court Day ‘lured’ Maria to the Airbnb in Tividale, around 20 miles from his home in Worcestershire, as part of a ‘detailed’ plan.

She said: ‘He had prepared himself to kill her. He had planned to dispose of her body without leaving signs of what had happened and he planned to get away with it. But it all went wrong and he was caught.’

Ms Brand said it was anticipated that Day, who was still living with his parents, will claim self-defence, saying he set up the room to film a ‘tribute’ to Dexter which he could post on TikTok.

Day, who denies murder, was arrested after injuring his hand and calling 999 for help in December last year, the prosecutor said.

‘Apparently his case is that Maria Saceanu took fright when she saw how he had staged the room, she picked up one of the knives and attacked him, cutting his hand, but he managed to disarm her and defended himself by stabbing her two or three times,’ she added.

A Home Office pathologist examined the victim’s body, finding 78 wounds which had been caused by knives, many of them inflicted after death.

Ms Brand said: ‘We say there is plenty of evidence which will drive you to the safe and solid conclusion that this was a murder.’

Day passed his first university year studying journalism, the court heard, but then transferred to another course, in applied biology and forensics.

Ms Brand told the jury: ‘As you will hear, he had never been in trouble with the police before, for anything, before he was arrested for the murder.

‘You may be wondering why a young man like that would suddenly get involved in killing another human being.

‘We don’t pretend, ladies and gentlemen, to be able to give you the deep-seated psychological reasons why he decided to kill another person – that’s not our remit.

‘But what we can tell you is that he had become fascinated with a particular television drama series – an American series – and his actions were those of a copycat, imitating the things he had seen in that programme.

‘That American TV drama series is called Dexter. Some of you may have seen it.

‘If you haven’t, please don’t rush home and start watching it.

‘We’ll call evidence which will tell you all you need to know about it, and as you will hear there is no dispute from the defence in this case that his fascination with that programme Dexter played a part in his actions leading up to the night that Maria Saceanu was killed.’

There was no evidence of any sexual contact between Day and Maria, jurors heard, but she had answered a text message from him shortly after 9.30pm on December 20 last year.

She made her way by car to the rented Airbnb in Barncroft Road, Tividale, arriving around 50 minutes later.

Ms Brand said jurors would probably conclude that Day killed Maria within a very short time of her arrival at the house, having been there ‘preparing’ since around 5.30pm.

After the killing, he tried to dismember her body, it was alleged, but ‘had to abandon that gruesome task’ because he cut his left hand, leaving the property at about 12.30am on December 21.

Day is said to have walked some distance away and then, having disposed of a ‘burner’ phone, called 999 at 12.50am.

Ms Brand said: ‘He had walked some distance from the house quite deliberately, we say, because he was thinking no-one knew about the dead body he had left in the bedroom… and he didn’t want to be linked to the house.

‘Perhaps he was also thinking that after his own hand was treated by doctors, he might go back and finish the job.’

At 1.05am Day sent a text to the landlord of the Airbnb, asking if he could extend his stay at Barncroft Road to a week, and then told police his hand injury had been caused by a fox or a dog.

Day was taken to Russells Hall Hospital in Dudley, while another resident who had booked a different room in the Airbnb went inside the property and was shocked to see a trail of blood in the premises and notified the landlord.

The landlord contacted police and officers found the body of Maria, who had been reported missing by her partner’s friend.

Day was arrested on suspicion of murder at 3.42am, the court heard, as he lay on a bed in hospital.

The pathologist had formed the view that Maria probably died as a result of wounds to her neck causing damage to her carotid arteries or jugular veins, with ‘a number of wounds to her hands which were consistent with efforts to protect herself’.

As part of his plan, the Crown allege, Day had placed the victim’s possessions into a black bin bag, ready for disposal.

Outlining evidence against Day, Ms Brand said that on November 18 last year, Day had made a ‘shopping list’ on his phone of things that were required for the killing, including knives, scissors, a mask, an apron, disposable gloves, plastic sheeting, duct tape, a staple gun, a T-shirt, trousers, cleaning chemicals, microscope slides, a pipette, and ‘hefties’ – a word used by Americans to describe heavy duty black bin bags.

All the items on the list were found at the scene, the court heard.

Listing what she said were ‘similarities’ between the death and the TV series, Ms Brand told jurors: ‘Dexter Morgan works as a forensic scientist in a police department – and the broad premise of the programme is that he is a serial killer who knows how to cover his tracks.

‘As you know the defendant changed his university course… to study applied biology and forensics.

‘Dexter wears a khaki T-shirt. The defendant had purchased just such a T-shirt and was wearing it when he was arrested – as you will see.

‘He had changed into “Dexter” clothing before Maria Saceanu arrived at the house.

‘In the TV series Dexter prepares a “kill room” when carrying out his attacks, lined with plastic sheeting which he fixes using a staple gun or duct/gaffer tape.

‘And this is exactly how the defendant had prepared the room.

‘Dexter wears an apron, a plastic visor and gloves when killing his victims – all such items were found in the bedroom (at Barncroft Road).’

Other similarities with the TV series included a canvas roll containing knives found in the bedroom, the dismemberment attempts and microscope slides thought to be a ‘trophy’ from the killing, Ms Brand said.

The trial continues today.

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