Stephen Wright, former crime editor for the Daily Mail, described the double murders committed by Rurik Jutting as the most depraved and evil he has encountered in his career.
Wright detailed the horrific events on the latest episode of The Crime Desk's "On The Case" podcast. Jutting, a then 29-year-old British banker, murdered two sex workers, Sumarti Ningsih, 23, and Seneng Mujiasih, 26, in his Hong Kong apartment in November 2014. The killings occurred during a binge of cocaine and alcohol. Jutting eventually called the police on himself, reportedly hallucinating that officers were outside his home.
Upon entering the apartment, authorities discovered Ningsih's body stuffed in a suitcase on the balcony and Mujiasih's body in the living room. Evidence presented in court revealed that Jutting had tortured Ningsih over several days, recording some of the acts on his iPhone. One recording, played during the trial, captured moments of violence against the gagged victim accompanied by the song "One More Time" by Daft Punk.
Recalling the trial, Wright expressed his profound shock at Jutting's demeanor, noting that the former banker appeared almost meditative on the stand. "I formed the opinion, not for the first time in my career, that he was reliving that moment of murder and enjoying it," Wright stated on the podcast. He described the brutality as being "off the scale" and questioned how one human could inflict such suffering on another, believing Jutting felt no shame and potentially relished the accounts of his crimes.
Jutting, who had a privileged upbringing in Surrey, attended Cambridge University and worked as an investment banker for Merrill Lynch, earning a significant salary. His career took him to Hong Kong, where his income was reportedly spent on drugs, alcohol, and sex. He later attempted to argue that his substance use had diminished his responsibility, a defense that was dismissed by the court.
Wright suggested that Jutting's excessive drug use may have inadvertently prevented further killings by making him careless enough to be apprehended. The former crime editor, who has covered numerous high-profile cases including the Rose West trial, stated that Jutting's case stood out due to the sheer level of violence and the chilling audio recordings of the victim's muffled cries. "He's the most dangerous, evil man whose murder trial I have ever attended," Wright said, adding that the experience of hearing a victim's final moments is something that remains with him permanently.