Woman who posed as sex worker to drug men admits manslaughter
A woman who pretended to be a sex worker and stole from men by drugging them unconsciously pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of two men.
Adina Mihai, 31, and Madalin Dumitru, 30, arranged to meet men seeking sexual services at their homes between August 2024 and July 2025 and gave them the drug gamma-butyrolactone (GBL) to steal from them.
Thames Valley Police said Mihai and male defendant Dumitru took financial deposits from the victims before Mihai met them at their home.
The pair pleaded guilty via video link at Oxford Crown Court on Wednesday to the manslaughter of Malcolm King, 80, in Bagendon, Gloucestershire, on 20 August 2024, and the manslaughter of Gary Mouat, 37, in Banbury, Oxfordshire, on 12 July 2025.
They also pleaded guilty to unlawfully and maliciously administering poison in the form of GBL to a male on 13 July 2025 and to another male on 22 July 2025; The identities of both men are protected by reporting restrictions.
The court heard the pair committed the crimes by secretly spiking their drinks with GBL (a substance that converts to GHB in the body) following an agreement to “steal people’s property by rendering them unconscious”.
Thames Valley Police said that after detectives discovered Mihai had poisoned Mr Mouat, police issued a national bulletin to all other police forces to share intelligence if any other unexplained deaths in the country were linked.
Forensic links led Gloucestershire Constabulary to discover that Mr King had also been poisoned, after initially believing his death was not suspicious due to a pre-existing health condition.
Mihai and Dumitru, both formerly of Ilford, Essex, were arrested on July 31 last year and their guilty pleas meant the trial, which was due to start on Wednesday, would not take place.
Lady Judge Brunner KC said she would impose “serious prison sentences” on the pair.
The judge added that he would sentence the couple at Oxford Crown Court “in late July or early August” and remand them into custody.
Police said “no other deaths, poisonings or thefts are currently associated with the investigation” but that they “keep an open mind about the possibility of additional victims.”
Prosecutor Julian Evans KC told the court: “The offenses were committed pursuant to an agreement between the defendants to render persons unconscious for the purpose of stealing their goods if those goods were detected at their respective addresses.
“The defenses made to resolve the indictment in this case may be accepted by the prosecution.”
Mr Evans said the decision to accept the manslaughter plea came after “contact with the families of the dead men” and consultation with “police forces who have been investigating these matters for many months”.
Thames Valley Police senior investigating officer Detective Inspector Michael Roddy said it was an “extremely complex and resource-intensive investigation”.
The police officer added: “Adina Mihai and Madalin Dumitru used drugs to subdue men seeking sexual services before stealing from them.
“These actions had fatal consequences for Gary Mouat, so I am pleased to have answers for his family and want to thank them for their support throughout our investigation.”
Detective Inspector Adam Stacey, senior investigating officer at Gloucestershire Constabulary, said: “Tragically for Mr King, the callous and calculated actions of Mihai and Dumitru had fatal consequences.
“The tireless work of everyone involved in the joint investigation left Mihai and Dumitru, in the face of overwhelming evidence, with little choice but to plead guilty to manslaughter and administering poison.”
