Police bodycam footage released by Lancashire Police shows the moment Nathan Owens was arrested for the murder of his stepdaughter, 19-year-old student Carla Georgescu. Owens, who will spend at least 35 years in prison, stares blankly as an officer explains he is being arrested on suspicion of murder.
In the footage, the arresting officer asks Owens if he is 'OK?', to which he quietly replies 'yes' before being handcuffed. The arrest took place after Carla was found dead in her halls of residence in Preston.
Brutal Attack and Attempt to Cover Up
Owens tricked his way into Carla's student accommodation at 4am on February 4, telling her that her mother had left her purse behind during a weekend visit. Once inside, he subjected Carla to a brutal sexual attack and strangled her, then staged the scene to make it look like she had taken her own life.
After killing Carla, Owens returned to Hartlepool, disposing of her mobile phone and other incriminating evidence along the way. He then went to bed and spent the day with Carla's mother, shopping and walking on the beach.
Carla was found the next day after her mother called campus security and asked them to check on her. When officers from Cleveland Police visited the family home, they said it looked as though Carla had died by suicide.
Digital Evidence Reveals Dark Obsession
Owens cried and was comforted by Carla's mother but only revealed he had seen her the next day, claiming she had asked him to help tidy her room. However, his digital devices revealed a dark sexual obsession, including deepfake images of the teenager and recordings of depraved sex acts in her bedroom.
Owens, of Hopps Street, Hartlepool, pleaded guilty to two counts of making indecent images of Carla by manipulating her childhood photos from the family album. He was found guilty of murder and GBH following a trial at Preston Crown Court.
Judge's Remarks at Sentencing
Setting a minimum term of 35 years before Owens is eligible to apply for parole, Mr Justice Jacobs described Carla as a young woman who was 'down to earth, a good sense of humour, passionate about psychology that she was studying at university, polite, kind, intelligent, articulate, lovely with a very gentle way'.
The judge said Carla had 'everything to live for' but Owens exploited her physical and mental vulnerability. He said the attack was premeditated and that fatal violence was part of the plan.
"The defendant knew that, unless the sex was consensual – and he had no reason at all to believe that it would be consensual – Carla would identify her attacker as her stepfather", the judge said. He said that was the reason he covered up his tracks and why, after sexually attacking Carla, he killed her.
The judge said Carla suffered both mentally and physically and that the last 90 minutes of her life were 'too horrendous to think about.'
"Nathan Owens, you have not shown any remorse for what you did. On the contrary, you denied having injured Carla in any way, knowing full well that you had done so."
"You took victim blaming to its limit by suggesting that she may have committed suicide. Her mother had to come and give evidence. None of that increases the sentence, but it further illustrates, if further illustration were necessary, how despicable you are."
"The only point in mitigation is that you have no previous convictions, but that counts for very little in terms of its impact on your sentence."
Owens slouched in his seat throughout the sentence hearing before sauntering out of the dock with his hands behind his back.
