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MAKING A KILLING

As British banker Rurik Jutting stands trial for sick Honk Kong hooker slayings, we look at the rich killers who committed vile crimes

THE sickening details that have emerged in the murder trial of British banker Rurik Jutting are the stuff of horror films.

The 31-year-old is accused of slaying of two Hong Kong sex workers, subjecting them to torture and turning his violent pornographic fantasies into morbid reality.

 Rurik Jutting is accused of brutally murdering two Hong Kong sex workers
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Rurik Jutting is accused of brutally murdering two Hong Kong sex workersCredit: Facebook

Jurors watched harrowing footage of Jutting attacking the first victim, Sumarti Ningsih, 23, whose throat he later slit using a jagged knife after making her lick the toilet bowl.

What makes his barbaric actions all the more shocking is the fact Jutting enjoyed an extremely privileged upbringing.

He grew up in a Grade II-listed mansion called Foxwarren, which was the inspiration for Toad Hall in classic kids book The Wind in The Willows.

 Jutting had a privileged upbringing
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Jutting had a privileged upbringingCredit: Reuters

Jutting attended a prep school near his Surrey home before going to Winchester College, where fees are £34,000 a year.

He later studied History at Peterhouse College, Cambridge, before landing high profile jobs at Barclays and Bank of America Merrill Lynch in 2010, where he earned £340,000 a year.

So where did it all go wrong for the successful expat?

He’s not the first privileged person to turn brutal perpetrator - in fact, Jutting joins a long list of male murderers who committed vile crimes.

Here we take a look at some of the most horrific slayings by men who had it all.

Adrian Prout

Millionaire Prout, who owned a pipe-laying business and commercial pheasant shoot, murdered his primary school teacher wife Kate and dumped her body in the woods of their £1.3 million country estate in Gloucestershire.

 Millionaire Prout, who owned a pipe-laying business and commercial pheasant shoot, murdered his wife Kate
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Millionaire Prout, who owned a pipe-laying business and commercial pheasant shoot, murdered his wife KateCredit: PA:Press Association

He was jailed for life in February 2010 for the killing in 2007, but only revealed where he hid his victim's remains over a year after he was imprisoned.

Kate disappeared the day after she asked her husband for a £800,000 divorce settlement.

Prout allegedly said he'd need to sell up to pay the settlement and offered her £600,000 plus maintenance.

Four years after she went missing, Prout confessed to his fiancee Debbie Garlick that he strangled Kate after a row and buried her.

Harold Landry

Harold Landry, an American millionaire who earned his millions in the oil and gas industries, was convicted of killing his British wife, Lucy, in 2010.

The couple met online and Landry moved across the pond to be with her, but their relationship soured and Lucy started seeing someone else.

She and Landry often fought about money, and when she asked for a divorce and cash to purchase a new home for her and her fella, it didn't go down well.

 Harold Landry, then 65, murdered his 38-year-old wife in their home
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Harold Landry, then 65, murdered his 38-year-old wife in their homeCredit: PA:Press Association

Landy hit Lucy over the head with a granite rolling pin before following her upstairs and stabbing her in the cheek with a kitchen knife.

As she tried to flee the house, Landry caught her and stabbed her more than 20 times before leaving her body under a bush with the knife still in her.

He was jailed for at least 16 years.

Robert Durst

Durst is the son of a New York City real estate mogul and is suspected in the deaths of his first wife Kathleen McCormack Durst and a potential witness to her murder - his friend Susan Berman, who was shot in the head at her home in 2000.

In the past he's admitted to killing and dismembering his neighbour Morris Black – though he was acquitted for the crime as he claimed self-defence.

 Robert Durst is suspected of killing his wife and close friend
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Robert Durst is suspected of killing his wife and close friendCredit: Reuters

Last year HBO ran a six-part documentary called The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst.

Currently the 72-year-old is incarcerated in New Orleans serving a 85-month prison sentence for a federal gun charges.

After this he is expected to be extradited to Los Angeles to stand trial for Berman's murder, though he denies he is responsible.

Joran van der Sloot

Born to an affluent Dutch family, who relocated to Aruba where his father accepted a job as a judge, Joran van der Sloot lived a life of extreme privilege.

He was prime suspect in the murder of Natalee Holloway, a teenager from Alabama who went missing while travelling in Aruba.

 Joran Van der Sloot was born into an affluent Dutch family
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Joran Van der Sloot was born into an affluent Dutch familyCredit: Alamy

But after trying to extort thousands out of Natalee's family in return for revealing where he'd 'disposed' of her body, it turned out he was bluffing and her remains were never found.

Five years later van der Sloot was eventually sentenced to 28 years in a Peruvian prison for the murder of Stephany Flores Ramirez, whose body was found in his hotel room.

Lyle and Erik Menendez

These brothers were jailed for the shocking murder in cold blood of their parents, Jose and Kitty.

Their dad was a wealthy businessman who allegedly put pressure on his sons to replicate his success.

After watching Billionaire Boys Club, a mini-series where a social club turns murderous, the boys hatched a plan to free themselves of their pushy father - by bumping him off.

 Lyle and Erik Menendez shot their parents in cold blood
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Lyle and Erik Menendez shot their parents in cold bloodCredit: Reuters

Not only that, they also shot their mother to make it look like their Beverley Hills pad had been burgled.

But they came a cropper when people began noticing their excessively lavish lifestyle - the brothers spent well over a million dollars of their inheritance on shopping sprees in the wake of their parents' death.

Erik later broke down and confessed to a psychotherapist and the boys were sent to prison for the murder.

James “Bob” Ward

A real estate developer, Ward appeared to be living a dream life in an affluent neighbourhood inhabited by celebrities like Tiger Woods.

But the millionaire's life came crashing down when he was convicted in 2011 for shooting his wife in the head at their marital home.

 Ward was charged with second-degree murder in the death of his wife Diane, who was shot in the bedroom of their Isleworth mansion in 2009
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Ward was charged with second-degree murder in the death of his wife Diane, who was shot in the bedroom of their Isleworth mansion in 2009Credit: Getty Images

He denied killing her, accusing his wife of being suicidal, but in his call to the emergency services he reportedly told them several times, 'I just shot my wife'.

The crime scene also showed signs that a fight had taken place and Ward was sent to prison.

Phil Spector

Having worked with the likes of The Beatles, music producer Spector was a respected name in the industry and led a privileged life.

But he was convicted of murder in 2009 after actress Lana Clarkson was found dead in his home with a gunshot through her face.

 Phil Spector was found guilty of the murder of actress Lana Clarkson
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Phil Spector was found guilty of the murder of actress Lana ClarksonCredit: AP:Associated Press

Although Spector initially claimed it was suicide, six years after Clarkson's death Spector was convicted of her murder and sentenced to 19 years in prison.

The prosecutor described him as a very dangerous man and pointed out he had two previous firearms convictions to his name.

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