[dropcap]A[/dropcap] Coventry University student played a part in the Saul Murray honeytrap killing in Luton. Temidayo Awe, a third year undergraduate, was convicted of the manslaughter of the dad-of-six after she played a part in the honey trap that led to him dying of stab wounds outside his flat in New Town Street in the early hours of February 27, 2022.
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The Channel 4 show 24 Hours in Police Custody last night (March 20) showed how detectives found that Awe, together with three others, plotted to drug and rob Murray after seeing images of him on Instagram wearing Rolex watches.
It showed Bedfordshire police raiding Awe’s student home in Coventry and she was later charged with the murder of Murray, before later being found guilty of his manslaughter at Luton Crown Court.
The first part of the TV programme showed how Awe’s distinctive coat, which she wore on the night of the murder, was found in the wardrobe of her student digs in the city.
Saul Murray, 33, met the two women at his Luton flat in February 2022, who had “sexual activity” with him and gave him the sedative GHB.
The court was told defendant Surpreet Dhillon made contact with Murray via Instagram and WhatsApp, and the four defendants travelled to Luton from London in a Mercedes A-class car that Cleon Brown had hired.
Prosecutor Jane Bickerstaff KC said Dhillon and co-defendant Temidayo Awe met the victim outside his flat and the two women shared brandy with him inside and also gave him GHB “to knock him out”.
She said some degree of sexual activity took place and said the pair “admit they have done this before – setting up men and stealing items from them, including watches, while those men are asleep”.
It emerged that Awe and Dhillon visited Murray’s flat and drugged him with a date rape drug. CCTV showed Awe leaving the flat shortly before 2.30am, whilst Dhillon propped the communal door open with a broom, so Awe was able to later return with two men – Ikem Affia and Cleon Brown.
The CCTV then showed the two women leaving together around 20 minutes later, with the two men running behind. One of the men, now known to be Affia, was carrying a large knife as he left the building.
The footage then showed Murray stumbling to the front door of the flats, naked, before falling to the floor.
BedfordshireLive, which covered the case, reported that Luton Crown Court heard that Dhillon had initially contacted Mr Murray via Instagram, continuing the conversation on WhatsApp before agreeing to meet up the day before his death. Dhillon and Awe were identified after they were captured on CCTV entering Mr Murray’s flat with him just before 11.40pm.
Fast track forensics linked a glass left at the scene to Dhillon, whilst phone data showed that Murray had called her via WhatsApp before her arrival at his flat.
Detectives carried out further phone work which placed Brown at the location at the time of the incident, with him having made contact with Dhillon around the same time. Additional footage confirmed that a Mercedes Benz, which was seen acting suspiciously in the vicinity of Mr Murray’s flat, had been hired by Brown.
Brown was also caught CCTV using a vacuum cleaner to clean the Mercedes at a petrol station in London after the offence had taken place. He is wearing the same jogging bottoms as in the CCTV from Mr Murray’s flat.
Further CCTV from a fast-food restaurant in London showed Brown and Affia together, with Affia wearing the same coat that was seen on the CCTV footage at Mr Murray’s flat. Vehicle telematics placed the Mercedes at Affia’s home address before and after Mr Murray’s death.
Judge Michael Simon told the sentencing hearing at Luton Crown Court that it was a “senseless” conspiracy to rob.
As a result of the trial, the four were given the following sentences:
- Ikem Affia, 31, of Shore Place, London was sentenced to life in prison for murder and will have to serve a minimum of 25 years. He was also sentenced to 14 years for conspiracy to commit robbery to run concurrently.
- Cleon Brown, 29, of King Edwards Road, South Hackney was sentenced to 11 years for manslaughter and nine years for conspiracy to commit robbery to run concurrently; a total of 11 years.
- Surpreet Dhillon, 36, of Carnarvon Road, London was sentenced to 10 years for manslaughter and 10 years for conspiracy to commit robbery to run concurrently; a total of 10 years.
- Temidayo Awe, 21, of Saunders Street, Gillingham was sentenced to seven years for manslaughter and six years for conspiracy to commit robbery to run concurrently; a total of seven years.
@freelanews Story of Temidayo Awe, who colluded with three others, to k!ll dad of six of Instagram photos of him wearing Rolex watches #tiktoknaija #foryou ♬ original sound – Freelanews
Det Insp Dale Mepstead, from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit, said: “This was clearly a planned attack; facilitated by Dhillon and Awe and carried out by Affia and Brown.
“It’s obvious from the way the two women used a sedative substance on Mr Murray and the fact Affia was armed with a knife that they were prepared to get what they wanted at any cost – which sadly was Mr Murray’s life.”
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