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A couple who murdered Irish champion dancer Adrian Murphy with a drug dubbed “Devil’s Breath” during a robbery plot faces life behind bars.
Oel Osei, (25) and his girlfriend Diana Cristea (19) were found guilty today of the murder of the Kilkenny man in his flat in Battersea, southwest London, in May 2019.
The couple targeted the victims on the gay dating site Grindr with a plan to knock them out with the drug scopolamine and strip their homes of valuables.
Adrian Murphy (43) died after being administered a fatal dose of the drug, while a second man had also been knocked out and robbed by the couple, but survived.
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Joel Osei (Metropolitan Police / PA)
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Murphy’s brother Robert said that his brother had been an “inspiring Irishman” and said the death had “left a great void” in the family.
Speaking after the verdict, he said: “The world is full of equality, but this cannot be said of our brother Adrian.
“Adrian brought the love and art of dance to thousands of young people around the world.
“He made so many loyal friends that they are very saddened by his untimely death as he was an inspiring Irishman, a talented dancer and choreographer.”
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Diana Cristea (Metropolitan Police / PA)
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Murphy then went on to describe his “very funny” brother as a man who could “make everyone laugh at his funny stories,” adding, “He had the gift of bringing people together.
“Adrian loved his hometown of Kilkenny and although he was a regular world traveler, he never missed an opportunity to return to his family and friends.
“Adrian’s legacy is that of a hero and hopefully his tragic death has prevented this from happening to any other innocent victim.
“Now he is dancing among the stars. May he rest in peace.”
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Joel Osei in the elevator of the block of flats in Battersea, South West London (Crown Prosecution Service / PA)
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Osei, nicknamed a “weird satanic wizard” by Cristea, created a fake profile on the gay dating app Grindr and got in touch with Murphy.
Having agreed to meet at Murphy’s flat, Osei slipped the drug into his glass of orange juice and proceeded to strip the flat of valuables.
Both Osei and Cristea used Grindr to befriend the men before drugging and robbing them.
They were arrested after Adrian Murphy’s body was found in a 17th floor flat in Battersea, southwest London, on June 4.
The Croydon Crown Court heard that paramedics had treated another man, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, several days earlier, who had also been drugged and robbed by Osei.
The couple then used the man’s details in a failed offer to buy $ 80,000 (€ 67,500) worth of diamonds from a jeweler in New York.
Both Osei and Cristea were also charged with one count of administering a poison or noxious substance to endanger life, two counts of robbery and eight counts of fraud.
The jury returned a majority guilty verdict on all charges for both defendants.
Osei had admitted manslaughter and an alternate count of administering poison, with the intent to injure, aggravate, or annoy, as well as seven counts of fraud.
He denied two counts of robbery.
Cristea admitted one count of fraud and two counts of handling stolen goods.
Prosecutor Crispin Aylett QC told the court that the drug scopolamine was known as devil’s breath in Colombia and is said to be “popular with thieves and rapists” as it allows them to incapacitate their victims.
The couple will be sentenced on December 14.
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