Julia Rawson murder trial: Woman 'killed in flat of horrors'

Julia Rawson "could not have known that she was about to enter a "flat of horrors", jurors were told

A serial killer obsessive lured a woman to his "flat of horrors" where he murdered and dismembered her, a court has heard.

Nathan Maynard-Ellis, 30, met Julia Rawson at a pub and took her to his home, which was decorated with stuffed creatures, snakes and "gory" homemade masks, jurors heard.

The defendant and boyfriend David Leesley, 25, allegedly dumped her remains in undergrowth.

Both men deny murder.

Ms Rawson, 42, from Dudley, West Midlands, was last seen alive on 12 May last year.

A trial at Coventry Crown Court heard her body parts were found in two different locations on 12 and 29 June.

Prosecutor Karim Khalil QC told jurors Ms Rawson had met Mr Maynard-Ellis by chance after she caught the wrong bus home.

Panic

Detailing the "especially gruesome" allegations, he said Ms Rawson "could not have known that she was about to enter a 'flat of horrors'".

"But she must have realised this very soon after she went in," he said.

Jurors were told she would have seen swords and spiders mounted on the walls of the flat, reptiles kept in tanks, and "many gory face masks" of horror film characters made by Mr Maynard-Ellis.

"One can only imagine the sense of panic that it might have created in her," Mr Khalil said.

"More disturbing perhaps, and entirely hidden from her view, was the mental make-up of the man with whom she had just arrived," Mr Khalil said.

"For years, he had been addicted to thoughts of the violent sexualised killing of women."

Julia Rawson met Nathan Maynard-Ellis in the Bottle and Cork pub in Dudley

Mr Maynard-Ellis, who had seen a psychiatrist about his fantasies, had collected newspaper clippings and books about serial killers, and horror films featuring decapitation and necrophilia, the jury heard.

He told a psychiatrist he struck his victim with a rolling pin after she made "moves" towards him and tried to wash Ms Rawson's injuries in a bathroom, but realised she had died.

After the killing, jurors were told, the defendant and his boyfriend "casually" walked along a nearby canal carrying the dismembered body parts.

The court heard that Ms Rawson's remains, including her severed head, hands and feet, were found on 12 and 29 June last year in two different locations.

Nathan Maynard-Ellis and David Leesley are alleged to have walked along the canal near their home carrying the dismembered remains of Julia Rawson

After the killing, prosecutors allege, both defendants acted together by burning clothing, disposing of a bloodstained sofa, and hiding rugs in a lock-up storage unit.

The pair then "went about their daily lives", continuing "as if nothing had happened", Mr Khalil said.

They went to work and met family, with Mr Maynard-Ellis appearing "very happy" as he celebrated his birthday on 21 May, the prosecutor said.

'Pent-up fantasy'

Mr Leesley knew of his partner's interests but denies playing any part in the death and "blames his boyfriend", the court heard, while Mr Maynard-Ellis now accepts that he was involved in the death but denies it was murder.

Despite Mr Maynard-Ellis telling a psychiatrist his only interest in serial killers or sadism was in the context of a criminology course, Mr Khalil said jurors would "already have realised just how closely his account of what he did to Julia matches his years of violent fantasy".

"He knew what he wanted to do and he intended to do exactly what he did - it was the culmination of years of pent-up fantasy and desire," he said.

Mr Maynard-Ellis also denies four counts of rape relating to allegations made by a woman after his arrest.

The trial continues.