Gay Couple Kill Lesbian Woman

In 2007, Nathan Maynard-Ellis began a relationship with a woman named CW. He was 17, she was a vulnerable 15-year-old who later described the relationship as violent and controlling. Soon after the pair began dating, she noticed Nathan had an obsession with serial killers, death, gore, and evil things. He was obsessed with death and often said he wanted to kill someone. CW said Nathan sometimes carried around a black robe and weapons in case he found “Someone to kill.”

Nathan told her he dreamed of having sex with a dead body and wanted to know what it felt like to rape a woman. The relationship ended soon thereafter.

After the couple split the same year, Nathan came out as “gay” and began a relationship with David Leesley. With DVDs about serial killers and necrophilia scattered across the house, Leesley surely knew of his new partner's violent fantasies, perhaps he himself enjoying the violent and forceful acts.

The couple enjoyed one another’s company and stayed together for the next two years.

A Fatal Meeting

One night in May 2009, Nathan met a woman named Julie Rawson at a Dudley pub called Bottle and Cork. Julie was out with friends and highly intoxicated when she met Nathan. Her friends soon left her at the club and she found herself alone at the bar with Nathan.

She gave Nathan her phone number which police found stuffed inside his pocket.

About 2 a.m. the couple left the club together headed back to Nathan’s place. She walked into a place police dubbed a “house of horrors,” filled with stuffed and real reptiles, horror masks, snuff and necrophilia DVDs, magazines covering sexual abuse of women, serial killer memorabilia and an ax, among other items.

Julie never exited the apartment. Family reported her missing. Police used surveillance footage from the bar and apartment complex to hone in on the two suspects.

Julie's Dismembered Body Found

In June 2019, one month after Julie’s disappearance, her body parts were found in two different locations across the city. Her body had been cut into 12 parts, her spine severed down the middle and her head removed. Her hands and feet had also been separated from the body.

One of Julie’s kidneys was missing, although Medical Examiners' who performed the autopsy said they could not determine if it was forcefully removed or missing as the result of decomposition. The Medical Examiner could not determine the exact cause of death but said she received at least four swift blows to her head. She was possibly strangled but the marks could have been caused by something else.

Life Goes On

During this one month period, both Nathan lived a normal life. Other people said they appeared happy and held a bgi celebration the week after the murder. The couple did toss out evidence of the murder, including a sofa and carpeting inside the apartment.

Men Arrested

Both men were arrested. They initially denied involvement with the murder but later confessed to dismembering and concealing Julie’s body. Nathan claims he brought Julie back to his home and she attacked him, leaving no other choice than to defend himself with a rolling pin.

David was charged with murder while Nathan was charged with murder and four counts of rape for the attack on CW two years earlier. Both men were sentenced to life behind bars. Nathan must serve at least 30 years of his sentence while Leesley must serve a minimum of 14-years before he is eligible for parole.

Following the verdict, Rawson's family came out with a statement.

“Her death has had a devastating impact on us, the mutilation of her body and the callous way in which her remains were scattered has revolted us," the statement read. "We can only pray Julia knew nothing about these abhorrent acts. We are a close and loving family, clinging to each other in an attempt to support each other through this harrowing ordeal, but shall remain deeply affected and troubled by these events for the rest of our lives because Julia’s loss is felt as keenly today as when we heard she had first gone missing.”

Resources & Case Information:

https://www.casemine.com/judgement/uk/604ee3592c94e0610fcfb963

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/never-before-seen-images-murder-23012459