Retired Sex Worker Recounts Peers' Murders in Prime Video Documentary
A retired sex worker has opened up about watching her peers get murdered in a heartbreaking new documentary series now streaming on Prime Video. The two-part series, titled Chasing a Killer: Gary Allen, features Amanda Hailes, who worked as a street-based sex worker in Hull during the late 1990s, sharing her horrifying experiences and emotional reactions to the killings.
Behind-the-Scenes Police Investigation
The chilling programme takes a behind-the-scenes look at a police investigation in South Yorkshire, following a suspect described as 'known for decades as a man who got away with murder' until his eventual arrest. In the first 45-minute episode, Amanda, now a campaigner for safer conditions and greater rights for sex workers in the UK, details her shock upon learning that women had been killed while working in the area.
In 1997, Samantha Class, a mother-of-two, was strangled to death by local man Gary Allen, with her body disposed of in a river before being discovered in the Humber Estuary. After Allen was acquitted in the subsequent trial, he went on to murder Alena Grlakova, who also worked in the sex industry, in 2019.
Amanda Hailes' Personal Account
Opening up about the 'absolutely terrifying' period following Samantha's death, Amanda explained that she knew the victim before she was killed. She revealed how women in the sex industry in the area feared they were being 'targeted' by a dangerous killer long before Allen was charged. Between Samantha's death and Allen's arrest, two other sex workers had died, heightening community concerns for safety.
Amanda stated that she 'continued working the streets even though it was such a risk', driven by a determination to 'survive it'. Recalling Samantha, she described her as 'friendly, outgoing, just a really nice girl'. Amanda shared a poignant memory: 'I was waiting to score, and I was sat with another girl who worked the streets... We found out because the police arrived to search her house. It was absolutely shocking.'
Challenges and Misconceptions of Sex Work
Describing sex work as a 'cash business' she entered to support her family and put food on the table, Amanda criticised those who dismiss the industry as a mere 'lifestyle choice'. She elaborated: 'It’s not until you enter sex work that you realise it’s far from easy. Physically and emotionally, it’s soul destroying. I think that sex workers are misunderstood. We’re often seen in films as the tart with a heart or victim number one, two, or three.'
Amanda concluded by expressing her desire for women like Samantha and Alena to be remembered as 'women, mothers and daughters', emphasising that if someone is 'a danger to sex workers, they're a danger to all women'.
Gary Allen's Crimes and Justice
In 2021, Gary Allen, described as a 'dangerous and violent' killer with a hatred for women, was finally brought to justice. He was sentenced for the murders of Samantha Class in Hull in 1997 and mother-of-four Alena Grlakova in Rotherham 21 years later. Allen had been cleared by a jury in 2000 of murdering Ms Class, but after walking free, he attacked two sex workers in Plymouth and was jailed.
Upon his release, Allen returned to Humberside, where police launched an undercover operation in 2010 to assess the threat he posed to women. An undercover officer befriended him, and Allen admitted to strangling Ms Class, 29, and dumping her body in the river in 1997, with conversations covertly recorded. Her body was later found by schoolchildren on the banks of the Humber.
Despite the double jeopardy law allowing retrials for serious offences since 2003, prosecutors initially deemed there insufficient evidence to overturn the acquittal. However, after Allen murdered Ms Grlakova, 38, a Slovakian sex worker last seen on Boxing Day 2018, with her body found in a stream in Rotherham the following April, evidence linked him to the crime. This led to charges for the second murder and an application to the Appeal Court to retry him for Ms Class's murder.
The acquittal was overturned in 2019 after evidence was presented by Director of Public Prosecutions Max Hill QC. Allen received a mandatory life sentence after being found guilty at Sheffield Crown Court for both murders. Mr Hill remarked: 'Frankly, it's hard to find any other word for him than evil.'
The court heard harrowing details of Ms Class's brutal murder, including being stamped on, strangled with a ligature, and run over with a car. Allen had a history of violence against sex workers, telling a probation officer: 'I like to frighten them. I like to cause pain. I like to make them cry. I like blood. I like to hurt them. I enjoy it. It makes me feel good.'
Chasing a Killer: Gary Allen is streaming now on Prime Video, offering a stark look into these tragic events and the ongoing struggles faced by sex workers.
