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Rurik Jutting: British banker, 29, appears in court over Hong Kong murders Hong Kong murders: British banker Rurik Jutting allegedly described as an ‘insane psychopath’ in automated email response only days before murders
(about 3 hours later)
A British man has appeared in court in connection with the gruesome murders of two women - one of whom died six days before her body was discovered in a suitcase - in Hong Kong. A British banker working in Hong Kong has appeared in court charged with the murder of two sex workers – as claims emerged that automated emails had been seen in which he allegedly described himself as an “insane psychopath.”
Rurik George Caton Jutting, named in a court document, had been arrested after the bodies of the women - reportedly sex workers from Indonesia - were found at his flat in the Wan Chai district of the former British colony in the early hours of Saturday. Rurik George Caton Jutting, wearing a black t-shirt and trousers, spoke only to confirm he understood the charges against him during a short hearing this morning.
The 29-year-old has been identified as a Cambridge-educated banker. Bank of America Merrill Lynch spokesman Paul Scanlon said a person with that name had worked at the bank until recently. Yesterday Bloomberg news reported that Jutting set up an automated email response in the days prior to the murders, which allegedly said he was out of the office “indefinitely” and recommended contacting someone who was not “an insane psychopath.”
One of the dead women, named in a court document as Sumarti Ningsih, was killed on October 27, six days before her body was discovered in a suitcase on a balcony of the apartment. The email then went on to state: “For escalation please contact God, though suspect the devil will have custody. [Last line only really worked if I had followed through..]”
The second victim, who was aged between 25 and 30 was found with wounds to her neck and buttock. The 29-year-old is facing two counts of murder. He was accused of killing of Indonesian Sumarti Ningsih on 27 October and an unidentified female, thought to be an Indonesian sex worker named ‘Jesse’, six days later on 1 November.
The two murder charges were read to Jutting, who wore black trousers and a black t-shirt, and he was remanded into custody to appear again on November 10. The bodies were found at Jutting’s luxury flat in the busy Wan Chai district of the former British colony in the early hours of Saturday.
Jutting had asked officers to investigate the scene at his apartment, police said. His lawyer Martyn Richmond requested that the Cambridge history graduate be transferred from police custody to prison, indicating Jutting did not want to apply for bail.
Officers were called to the address in the early hours of Saturday and later seized a knife. Mr Richmond claimed that that local police had refused to allow his client to contact the British consul in Hong Kong for 36 hours after his arrest, despite him fully cooperating with police, who interviewed him “six or seven times at length”. He also said Jutting had been denied a choice of lawyer, instead selecting from a pre-prepared list.
Following the arrest a neighbour told the South China Morning Post there had been a strange smell. Jutting rang local police at around 3.40am on Saturday morning, asking officers to investigate the scene at his luxury flat. An unidentified naked woman, aged between 25 and 30, with knife wounds to her neck and buttocks was discovered by police upon their arrival.
"There was a stink in the building like a dead animal," the man said. "It was a shock because you would never expect something like this to happen in Hong Kong." The woman was later confirmed dead at the scene.
The paper reported that there had been a series of "shocking crimes" in the city in recent months but added that it has a “hard-earned and well deserved” reputation as one of the safest cities in the world. Police said preserving the crime scene of the first victim meant that it was eight hours before they discovered Ms Ningsih, 25, who was discovered wrapped in a carpet and concealed inside a suitcase on the balcony outside.
PA "There was a stink in the building like a dead animal," a neighbour told the South China Morning Post. "It was a shock because you would never expect something like this to happen in Hong Kong."
Officials seized a knife from the building, located in an affluent area of Hong Kong popular with foreign financial workers, where rent is on average £2,400 per month.
Jutting moved to Hong Kong in 2013, having previously worked in Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s London branch, and before that as a trader with Barclays.
It is believed Jutting quit his job only a few days before the first murder. Merrill Lynch spokesman Paul Scanlon said a person with that name had worked at the bank until recently.
On 31 October Jutting’s last posting on his Facebook page was a link to an article headlined, “Money DOES buy happiness”. Underneath this is a post of another article asking whether 29 was “the perfect age”.
An employee of the building where Jutted lived, and who saw him being taken away, said to the Daily Mail: “He always seemed so sad – he never said hello to any of us or smiled”.
Jutting read history and law at Peterhouse College, Cambridge, and had been a member of the lightweight rowing club and the cross-country running club at the university.
He also attended Winchester College, an independent boys school. Thomas MacThomas, who also attended the elite private school with Jutting, wrote on Twitter yesterday: “So I knew Rurik Jutting when at school. Kinda disturbing. He was quite strange.”
The South China Morning Post reported that there had been a series of "shocking crimes" in the city in recent months but added that it has a “hard-earned and well deserved” reputation as one of the safest cities in the world.
The magistrate Bina Chainraim remanded Jutting in custody until November 10.