Teen to serve at least 16 years over fatal poisoning
A YOUNG woman wept as she was sentenced to at least 16 years behind bars over the fatal poisoning of a dancer with a date rape drug known as “devil’s breath”.
Diana Cristea (19) helped and encouraged her boyfriend Joel Osei, 26, in a plan to target men on gay dating app Grindr and rob them and drain their bank accounts.
In the summer of 2019, Osei killed 43-year-old Irishman Adrian Murphy with an overdose of scopolamine — a substance known as devil’s breath which comes from the deadly nightshade family.
Afterwards, the couple attempted to buy $80,000 (£62,000) worth of diamonds from a jeweller in New York.
Mr Murphy is thought to have died sometime between meeting Osei on June 1 and his body being discovered by his best friend and former partner on June 4.
His phone had been thrown down the toilet, while a can of Coca-cola was found to contain traces of scopolamine and Osei’s fingerprints were discovered on a bottle of whisky at the scene.
Cristea and Osei, previously of Kerswell Close in Seven Sisters, north London, were both found guilty of murder following a trial at Croydon Crown Court.
They were also convicted of poisoning a second man with the same drug two days earlier.
The victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, survived the incident but was taken to hospital after being found by a neighbour almost naked, extremely agitated and confused.
Yesterday, Cristea, of Langley Park, Mill Hill, Barnet, north
London, was detained for life for murder with a minimum term of 16 years.
Sentencing at the Old Bailey, Mr Justice William Davis said Cristea had “assisted and encouraged” Osei.
In January, Osei was jailed for life with a minimum term of 32 years for murder.
Osei was also given a concurrent jail sentence of five years for administering a poison to endanger life against the surviving victim, and no separate penalty for multiple counts of theft and fraud.