Killer who murdered intercourse employee 30 years in the past now faces life in jail
- Sandip Patel, then 21, murdered Marina Koppel in her house in August 1994
- His DNA was matched to a hair in her ring and was linked bloody footprint
- He was discovered responsible by a jury on the Old Bailey on Thursday and faces jail
A killer recognized by means of a hair caught within the ring of a murdered intercourse employee and a bloody footprint nearly thirty years after the killing is now going through a life sentence.
Marina Koppel, 39, was discovered useless by her husband in her house in Chiltern Street, Marylebone, near the fictional residence of Sherlock Holmes, on August 8, 1994.
Sandip Patel, who was 21-years-old on the time and ran errands for his father’s newsagent Sherlock Holmes News on Baker Street, killed Mrs Koppel by stabbing her greater than 140 occasions in a ‘frenzied assault’.
While his finger marks had been discovered on a provider bag in her kitchen, he was not handled as a suspect on the time.
The crime went unsolved till a assessment in 2022, when Mr Patel was charged together with her homicide. Hair that had snagged in Mrs Koppel’s ring was DNA matched Mr Patel’s, whereas he was additionally linked to a bloody footprint discovered on a skirting board within the house.
Sandip Patel, now 51, denied murdering Marina Koppel in 1994, however declined to offer proof in his defence. He was discovered responsible by a jury yesterday and is awaiting sentencing
Marina Koppel, who was born in Colombia, was discovered lined in blood in her house by her husband, the late David Koppel, on the night of her dying
The bloody footprint discovered at Mrs Koppel’s house in London, which helped implicate Mr Patel within the homicide
Mr Patel had extracted Mrs Koppel’s financial institution card pin through the assault and used the quantity to withdraw cash close to his residence, it was alleged.
Mr Patel, now 51, denied homicide however was unanimously convicted by a jury on the Old Bailey on Thursday. Mr Patel had declined to offer proof in his defence.
Members of Mrs Koppel’s household wept as the decision was introduced, whereas Mr Patel confirmed no indicators of emotion.
Sentencing was adjourned till Friday, with Mr Justice Cavanaugh telling Mr Patel: ‘There is just one sentence I can cross for this offence. Of course a sentence of life imprisonment.’
Jurors had heard how the Colombian-born Mrs Koppel had beforehand labored as a resort chambermaid and later labored as a masseuse and provided sexual companies to round 100 ‘well-to-do’ males ‘if the value was proper’.
According to her late husband, David Koppel, her purchasers had included profitable folks, businessmen, a physician, and even a politician.
Bill Emlyn Jones, prosecuting, had earlier mentioned that little was identified of Mrs Koppel’s final actions, however that the day earlier than she had entered a poker match on the Victoria Sporting Club on line casino and met a consumer at a Heathrow resort earlier than returning to London.
Her final identified sighting was a go to to Midland Bank on Baker Street at 1.42pm on August 8, 1994. Mr Koppel, who lived in Northampton, had been attempting to pay money for her and found her physique that night.
‘He discovered a horrific scene,’ Mr Jones instructed jurors. ‘In the second bed room, the one to which Marina would take her purchasers, David Koppel discovered his spouse on the ground, useless.’
Mrs Koppel was discovered lined in blood and carrying solely black lacy lace-up lingerie that she may put on if she was anticipating one in every of her purchasers, jurors had been instructed.
Mr Emlyn Jones mentioned she had been stabbed greater than 140 occasions through the ‘sustained and savage’ assault.
He instructed jurors: ‘Marina Koppel was brutally murdered.’
‘It has taken a really very long time to unravel it, however we now have proof that she had this defendant’s hair caught to the ring she was carrying when she was attacked and killed; and his naked foot was pressed towards the skirting board subsequent to her.
While the fingerprints of the then 21-year-old had been discovered on a plastic bag in her kitchen, he was not handled as a suspect as a result of he would have dealt with luggage from his father’s retailer
Marina Koppel had labored as a masseuse and intercourse employee, and her purchasers had included profitable folks, businessmen, a physician, and even a politician, in line with her late husband
While Mr Patel’s finger marks had been discovered on a provider bag in her kitchen, he was not handled as a suspect on the time as he would have been dealing with luggage at his father’s retailer
‘And that, the prosecution says, can solely be as a result of it was him who killed her all these years in the past.’
Even although Patel’s finger marks had been discovered on an unbranded plastic bag within the kitchen, he was not handled as a suspect as a result of he would have dealt with luggage from close by Sherlock Holmes News.
Patel solely grew to become a confirmed suspect in 2022 after his DNA was matched to a hair discovered by a scientist on the ring in 2008.
Although expertise was nonetheless not superior sufficient then for scientists to get a DNA profile, it was preserved till 2022 and re-examined.
The bloody footprint was discovered on the scene in 1994 and matched to Patel after he was made a suspect, the prosecutor mentioned.
Mr Emlyn Jones instructed jurors: ‘You might have little hassle concluding that if these footprints had been made in Marina’s moist blood, then that may solely be as a result of they had been left by her killer – somebody who was in that room, barefoot, on the time of her blood being on the skirting board.
‘All these years later, they’ve been recognized – they’re the defendant’s prints – they had been made by the only of his left foot.’
Following his arrest, Patel denied figuring out the sufferer however mentioned he would run errands for his father.
He instructed police: ‘I proceed to haven’t any recollection of Marina Koppel, her deal with, or this incident. I don’t know how my fingerprint got here to be on this provider bag or how a hair of mine was current.’
He was rearrested in 2023 after his footprint was recognized and answered ‘no remark’ to questions.
Mr Koppel died in 2005, by no means discovering who murdered his spouse.
He was remanded into custody to be sentenced on the Old Bailey on Friday.
