A gay Saudi prince has been jailed for life today with a minimum term of 20 years for beating and strangling his servant to death in the culmination of a campaign of 'sadistic' abuse.
Saud Abdulaziz bin Nasser al Saud was found guilty at the Old Bailey of murdering Bandar Abdulaziz in a 'brutal' assault at their five-star hotel suite. The prince was fuelled by champagne and 'sex on the beach' cocktails when he bit the year-old hard on both cheeks during the attack in February.
It was also revealed he could seek asylum upon release, because homosexuality is punishable by death in his home country. Before the violence: Saud Abdulaziz bin Nasser al Saud, left, with his servant Bandar Abdulaziz share a cocktail during their fateful stay in London. They had just returned from a Valentine's Day night out when Saud launched the ferocious assault.
When he was arrested he at first wrongly believed he had diplomatic immunity but his special status as a Saudi royal could not save him from British justice. The year-old, a member of one of the world's richest and most powerful dynasties, was found guilty of murder by the jury after just one hour and 35 minutes of deliberation.
The sentence means end to his luxury playboy lifestyle, funded by his wealthy family, in which he dined in fine restaurants and secretly entertained gay escorts in his plush hotel room. Convicted: Gay killer Saud Abdulaziz bin Nasser al Saud was fuelled on Champagne and 'sex on the beach' cocktails when he attacked his servant. Sentencing him today, Mr Justice Bean said: 'It is very unusual for a prince to be in the dock on a murder charge.
