A horrific murder occurred on Bournemouth beach, and criminology student Nathanial Saddy was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 39 years for the murder of Amie Gray and the attempted murder of Leanne Miles. What makes this case particularly remarkable is that the police successfully brought the perpetrator to justice without any DNA evidence. The BBC will delve into how the police cracked the case in the absence of crucial physical evidence.

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On the night of the incident, Bournemouth beach was illuminated by a "blood moon." Amateur photographer Mick Priddle, while enjoying the night sky on the cliffs, heard two screams coming from the beach below. Little did he know that he would become a key witness in this murder case. For Detective Inspector Mark Jenkins, who was in charge of the case, it would be the most challenging case of his career.

Shortly before midnight on May 24, 2024, Amie Gray and Leanne Miles lit a bonfire and chatted on Durley Chine beach. A hooded man emerged from the promenade, rushed towards them, and repeatedly stabbed both women before fleeing into the darkness, leaving them struggling in pools of blood. Ms. Miles, 38, managed to dial 999 and was rushed to the hospital with 20 stab wounds to her back. Tragically, Ms. Gray, 34, died at the scene from a stab wound to the heart, having sustained 10 stab wounds.

Detective Inspector Jenkins stated that Ms. Miles provided a clear description of the stranger who attacked them. However, proving who the perpetrator was proved challenging, as no forensic evidence was left at the scene. While crime scene investigators meticulously searched for fingerprints and DNA, they found nothing, and police officers were reviewing CCTV footage from the promenade.

The CCTV recorded the brutal attack. The footage showed the man fleeing in the direction of Bournemouth Pier and the zig-zag path, which leads to West Cliff Gardens, where there are no cameras. "That's what I call the bottleneck," Inspector Jenkins said. "I knew there was only one way from that point to the top of the cliff." He said the footage was grainy but sufficient to identify some distinctive clothing features. "His jacket was black with a grey stripe, he had what was described as a bumbag with a reflective logo and a strap hanging down on the left side."

It took the police three days to identify the suspect. Police Sergeant Sarah Gudge, part of the team responsible for sifting through thousands of hours of CCTV footage, made the breakthrough when they found the suspect in daylight on the West Hill Road on the morning of the murder. "That was our eureka moment," PS Gudge said. Using footage from nearby cameras, they tracked him to a convenience store. He paid for his purchases with his bank card, making it easy for the police to find his name and address.

The suspect, then 20-year-old Nathanial Saddy, was traced to his aunt's house in Croydon and arrested on May 28. Police discovered that he had traveled to Bournemouth on May 21, stayed at a Travelodge, and made several reconnaissance trips in the area. The night before the attack, he moved to the Silver How Hotel, slightly closer to the crime scene. During police questioning, Saddy said he was traveling alone in the seaside town but denied being the person in the CCTV footage.

Detectives asked him what he did after checking out of the Travelodge. Saddy replied, "I don't remember, possibly sleepwalking... I may have blacked out," and said his next memory was of being at home in Croydon on May 25. Further investigation into Saddy's background all but confirmed the police's suspicions. His internet history showed searches for "how sharp can a kitchen knife be," "if a criminal commits a crime in another town why is it harder to get caught," and "which hotels in the UK don't have CCTV."

In the days leading up to the murder, he searched for "Bournemouth CCTV" and "Bournemouth Pier CCTV." He also purchased several knives online, and officers found knives, latex gloves, and a balaclava at his home in Purlieu. But police could only obtain "limited information" from his phone because he refused to give them the passcode, a crime he later admitted. Nevertheless, they still hadn't found the murder weapon or the clothing worn on the night of the attack.

Investigators discovered that Saddy had an interest in true crime and was a criminology and criminal psychology student at the University of Greenwich. He had asked lecturer Dr. Lisa-Marie Lees at a seminar about using self-defense as a murder defense and about DNA evidence, topics that were not covered in the seminar. She replied: "You're not planning a murder, are you?" Dr. Lees' partner, Special Constable Pawandeep Singh Anejah, was invited to give a lecture to students about policing last November. He said Saddy had also asked questions "about DNA, how to get away with it, those types of things."

Although police had a detailed picture of Saddy's background and his movements in Bournemouth, they still had no DNA evidence or murder weapon to link him to the attack. "I would have expected there to be blood on his clothes, but we never found the jacket, the bumbag, the gloves he was wearing, the knives, and the shoes," Inspector Jenkins recalled. "We really, really worked hard, left no stone unturned - literally no stone unturned." They needed a witness who could place Saddy at the scene of the murder.

Mick Priddle was used to hearing noise and excitement from the beach and didn't realize the screams he heard that night were of terror. Days later, the 79-year-old photographer was flicking through the local paper and saw the police appeal with CCTV images of the murder suspect. He said he immediately thought of the night in West Cliff Gardens and was "100% certain" that Saddy had walked past him. "I said to myself straight away: 'That's him'," he told the BBC.

Mr. Priddle said that as he walked home from the cliff top in Bournemouth, he saw a man coming up the steps from the beach. He described him as "menacing" and wearing a jacket with a distinctive mark on the chest. "He did turn round, and as he did so, he stood under the street light, the hood moved, and I got a clear view of his face." Mr. Priddle was able to pick Saddy out of a series of photographs provided to him by the police and later gave evidence in court. "He looked evil," he said.

Inspector Jenkins said he played a significant role in securing Saddy's conviction. "In a way, I thank my hobby for taking me to the cliff top," Mr. Priddle added. In police interviews, Saddy claimed he was the victim of "mistaken identity." Saddy was charged with the murder of Ms. Gray and the attempted murder of Ms. Miles a week after the attack. He denied the charges but chose not to give evidence during the nine-day trial at Winchester Crown Court.

The jury found him guilty on both counts, and he has since begun his life sentence. For Dorset Police, it was a successful conclusion to a case that saw them working around the clock to track Saddy down. Inspector Jenkins told the BBC he was incredibly proud of his 150-strong team. He described Ms. Gray's injuries as catastrophic and added that Saddy "clearly had a determination about him."

"They did nothing wrong, Amie and Leanne were sat on the beach, enjoying a fire on a May evening, quietly chatting, there was nobody around." "I think that's possibly why he selected them," he said. "We've never really been able to hear from him what his motive was." "That makes it difficult to explain to Amie's family and Leanne why this has happened, because I haven't got any answers." Ms. Gray's wife, Sian Gray, said she was glad to see justice served.