Ripper killer guilty of brutally murdering woman, 33, thirty years after boasting he had ‘got away with it’ | The Sun
A RIPPER-style killer has been convicted of butchering a woman he slaughtered 30 years after boasting he had "got away with it".
Double killer David Smith, 66, brutally murdered sex worker Sarah Crump, 33, in Southall, West London, in 1991.
She was later found with her breasts cut off, her chest opened and her internal organs placed on the bed.
Smith has today been found guilty of murder at Inner London Crown Court.
It can now be revealed that the lorry driver – known as "Honey Monster" to colleagues due to his 6ft 3ins frame – was previously cleared of killing Sarah 30 years ago.
After walking free, the fiend murdered and mutilated another sex worker, 21-year-old Amanda Walker, in a chilling echo of Sarah's killing.
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Her decomposing body was discovered in the grounds of the Royal Horticultural Society, in 1999.
While awaiting trial for Amanda's murder, Smith had boasted to a fellow lag he had already faced trial for murder at the Old Bailey but had "walked".
"He said that they got no evidence on him and that he got away with it," the prisoner said.
Smith also has previous convictions for raping a young mum in front of her children and the attempted rape of another escort just days before he killed Sarah.
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During a harrowing trial, jurors were told Sarah was slaughtered as part of a twisted timeline of “escalating violent and sexual offending against women" carried out by Smith.
The monster had developed an “unhealthy and inappropriate obsession” with two women – including one with scars across her breasts and stomach.
This fixation with the scarred woman led Smith on a brutal killing spree where he mutilated his victims to look like the object of his desire.
On August 28, 1991, Sarah left her day job Wembley Hospital before making arrangements to meet with Smith.
She called her agency at 2am to check in with them and report Smith had left her flat, which was a safety protocol.
Unfortunately for Sarah, the killer was a regular user of escorts and knew the guidelines.
Prosecutor William Boyce KC said: "The prosecution contends that the highly irregular nature of this call – short, abrupt, and not using any name – indicates that Sarah Crump knew she was in danger at the time she made it, and that Smith had compelled her to make the call to provide some evidence that he had left, knowing full well that no final call would provide compelling evidence that he was responsible for her death."
Over the following days, Sarah's boyfriend reported her missing after failing to get in touch with her.
When officers arrived at her home, blood was found in the bathroom and on her dressing table.
Her “brutally mutilated” body was then discovered on her bed.
Mr Boyce said: "The killing of Sarah Crump was one element of a wider spectrum of evidence that reveals an escalating pattern of violent and sexual offending.
"That pattern includes the defendant’s conviction in 1976 for the knife-point rape of a young mother in her own home; the attempted rape of an escort on 18 August 1991, just 10 days prior to the murder of Sarah Crump, and the murder and mutilation of a sex worker in 1999."
Smith first stood trial for murdering Sarah in 1993 but was cleared after his defence counsel accused police of suppressing evidence and incompetence.
The sex worker's mum Pat Rhodes had warned Smith would go on to kill again before he slaughtered Amanda.
His prison confession caused the case to be referred to the Court of Appeal, with a fresh trial granted after double jeopardy laws changed.
Smith, who is already serving a life sentence for Amanda's murder, will be sentenced at a later date.
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Sarah's older sisters Joanne Platt and Suzanne Wright, who were in court for the verdict, said : "At long last justice for our lovely Sarah.
"If only mum and dad were here with us today to share this momentous occasion."
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