British banker bags life imprisonment

Murder of 2 Indonesian women

A British banker was jailed for life on Tuesday for the “sickening” murders of two Indonesian women he tortured in his Hong Kong apartment.

Rurik Jutting, 31, a former Bank of America employee, had denied murdering Sumarti Ningsih, 23, and Seneng Mujiasih, 26, in 2014 on the grounds of diminished responsibility due to alcohol and drug abuse and sexual disorders.

Judge Michael Stuart-Moore said the case was one of the most horrifying cases the Chinese-ruled territory has known.

He had pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter in a case that gripped world media due to graphic video footage seen by the jury and the brutality of the killings.

The jury unanimously found Jutting guilty of murder and he was sentenced to life imprisonment.

His lawyers have said he will apply to serve his sentence in Britain, the former colonial power in Hong Kong, where prisoners can in some cases apply for parole after a fixed number of years.

Stuart-Moore agreed for an application to be filed, but said he would inform the authorities in Britain exactly what they would be dealing with.

The judge urged caution against falling for Jutting’s “superficial charm.”

Cambridge-educated Jutting, wearing a blue shirt, looked down and showed no emotion when the verdict was read out in an open courtroom, packed with international and local newsmen.

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