Romanian fake escort and her boyfriend face jail for killing big game hunter and wealthy businessman with date rape drug in sex scam

By OLIVIA DAY, ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR, AUSTRALIA Published: 14:33, 13 August 2026 | Updated: 14:48, 13 August 2026 A woman who posed as a Romanian escort and her partner will learn their fate in court after killing two men after drugging them unconscious to steal from them.  Adina Mihai, 31, and her partner Madalin Dumitru, 30, arranged to meet men at their homes after they paid for what they believed would be sexual encounters.  Oxford Crown Court heard four men were drugged when glasses of wine were spiked with the powerful sedative gamma-butyrolactone (GBL).  Two of the victims, Malcolm King, 80, from Bagendon, Gloucestershire, and Gary Mouat, 36, of Banbury, Oxfordshire, died after consuming fatal doses of the drug.  At a previous hearing, the pair pleaded guilty to two charges of manslaughter and to administering poison to two others, who cannot be identified for legal reasons.  Mihai never provided any sexual services to her victims, but instead posed as a sex worker in order to gain access to wealthy businessmen.  She would determine whether her victims were wealthy before stealing watches, jewellery, aftershave and cash, the value of which is unknown.  Mr King, a property magnate known as one of the world's biggest game hunters, died a short time after inviting Mihai into his £4million Cotswold mansion.  Adina Mihai, 31, and her partner Madalin Dumitru, 30, arranged to meet men paying for sex at their homes under the guise of sexual liaisons (Ms Mihai is pictured) Mr King, a property magnate who was known as one of the world's biggest game hunters, died a short time after inviting Mihai into his £4million Cotswold mansion The court heard the married businessman contacted Mihai on August 20, 2024, and arranged to meet her at his home that evening while his wife was away.  His body was discovered the following morning by his housekeeper, who also found an empty bottle of wine and two glasses. Mr King had long-term heart conditions and had a pacemaker, with cardiologists able to determine the circumstances of his death after analysing the device. The court heard that Mr Mouat's wife and son were away for the night of July 12, 2025, and he contacted Mihai via Vivastreet, a classified advertising website.  Mihai and Dumitru then travelled from Ilford to Mr Mouat's home. Mr Mouat drank wine laced with GBL and Mihai left him unconscious, while she searched for items to steal from the house. He was found the following morning on the floor of his lounge by family friends who grew concerned when he hadn't been in contact with anyone since the previous day. An open bottle of wine was found nearby with two wine glasses. Hours after returning to Ilford from Mr Mouat's home, a third man, known in court as 'victim three', contacted Mihai on Vivastreet. Mihai used GBL to render her victims unconscious before calling her partner Dumitru (pictured) who waited outside victims' homes The court heard that Mr Mouat's wife and son were away for the night of July 12, 2025, and he contacted Mihai via Vivastreet, a classified advertising website The defendants arrived at his home at 2.45am on July 13, with Mihai bringing a bottle of wine purchased from a petrol station. The court heard the man had paid Mihai £450, drank some of the wine, and after waking from unconsciousness found his 'high-value Rolex watch' was missing. A week later, the fourth victim, known as 'victim four', contacted Mihai and she arranged to meet for £360. Julian Evans KC said the Crown's case was that the defendants did not intend to kill their victims but instead intended to cause harm by rendering them unconscious.  He told the court: 'After contact was made through a website, and arrangements made by phone, Mihai and Dumitru drove to the home address of each victim. 'While Dumitru waited nearby, Mihai would enter the victim's home. There, she would persuade the victim to drink alcohol laced with GBL to render them unconscious. 'Once the victim was unconscious, Mihai would look for property to steal. Then she would rejoin Dumitru, leaving the victim alone and unconscious.' The prosecutor said the defendants 'drew comfort' from the shared belief that their victims were unlikely to report what had happened to them to the police.  Mr Mouat drank wine laced with GBL and Mihai left him unconscious, while she searched for items to steal from the house Mr King's body was discovered the following morning by his housekeeper, who also found an empty bottle of wine and two wine glasses Mr Mouat's nine-year-old son, Alfie, told the court he would 'never get over' the death of his father, which had made him over-protective of his mother.  'Ever since my dad died my life has been really tough. I miss him every day and will never get to see him again,' he said in a recorded witness statement.  'You have ruined my life and all the plans we had to do things together. My family is destroyed now. I will never be able to go and watch a football game with my dad now. 'I won't get to go have my first beer with him. I don't know what my life will be like now, I always imagined my dad would be here.' Louise Mouat, 35, told the court she had to break the devastating news to her now nine-year-old son Alfie.  She told the defendants: 'On July 13 last year our lives changed forever because of what you did.  'I had to tell my eight-year-old son that his daddy had died. 'Someone who should have been around to watch him grow up was gone.' Mr King's daughter, Caroline King, said his death has prevented their reconciliation following the end of his marriage to her mother.  'My relationship with my father was never easy and there were periods when we had no contact at all,' she told the court.  'Despite everything, he was still my father. And despite everything, I never stopped hoping that one day we would find our way back to each other. 'I believed there would be time. Time for difficult conversations. Time to understand each other. Time to forgive. Time to heal. 'The defendants did not simply unlawfully take my father's life. They stole the future that both he and I still had the possibility of writing together.'