Experts clash on appeal in murder of Ukrainian sex worker Arina Sasina

Two pathologists involved in the case of a man convicted of the rape and murder of 34-year-old Ukrainian sex worker Arina Sasina have reached conflicting conclusions about Sasina's cause of death. While the medical examiner working for the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI) believes Sasina was likely strangled at the hands of a client before her body was dismembered, while an independent pathologist providing expert testimony based on an independent investigation said her death was more likely to have been accidental.

The disagreement emerged during Monday's hearing into the appeal of Sander K.'s July 2024 conviction by the Amsterdam District Court. On August 18, 2022, Sasina went to K.’s house for a paid sexual encounter. She was bound with zip ties on a fitness bench in the attic, and K. said she suffocated during the aggressive sexual activity that followed.

The lower court cited the NFI pathologist's examination when convicting K., with a determination that K. strangled Sasina with his hands. An examination of Sasina's body found that the hyoid bone in her neck was fractured. K. was sentenced to ten years in prison and compulsory psychiatric treatment for the rape and strangulation of Sasina. The Public Prosecution Service has appealed, saying the punishment was too light, having initially sought 15 years imprisonment.

K. himself has also lodged an appeal in the case. His defense maintains it could not be conclusively determined that the hyoid bone was fractured. Now 37, K. has continued to maintain that Sasina died after a zip tie he had placed around her neck as part of a bondage fantasy tightened during consensual sex.

They cited a report from an independent pathologist, who based her conclusions on photographs of the body. She said it was plausible that Sasina died by suffocation when her neck leaned against the tie wraps, as K. has claimed, according to the IJmuider Courant.

On the night of her death, Sasina allegedly told the man that she was unable to breathe, after which K. panicked and went downstairs searching for pliers to remove the zip tie. The Appeals Court of Amsterdam noted that he did not assist Sasina, spent a long time searching for the pliers, did not manage to remove the cable tie on time, and did not attempt to revive her. As an inland ship captain, K. was previously trained to provide CPR to help people in distress.

When questioned on why he had not made a more thorough attempt to save Sasina’s life. He replied that he himself could not say for certain. “I was panicking and not thinking clearly,” he stated, and was under the influence of alcohol. He left her lifeless body on the fitness bench for a day and a half, during which he went to a remote location and, he claimed, “spent the time drinking.”

The district court ruling refuted much of K.'s defense, basing its opinion in part on the police investigation into Sasina's sex work practices. While the IJmuiden man has insisted that Sasina consented to being tied up, the lower court ruled there were indications she did not want to be tied up, and that she was raped. "It is implausible that she would simply allow herself to be led to an attic in a stranger's house and tied up," the district court said. As such, K. forced the woman to have anal sex while she was bound, and cited numerous bruises on her body and face as evidence of K.'s violence.

Judges overseeing the appeal also noted that Sasina's profile on a website advertising sex work services did not indicate she was open to bondage detailed in the case. They said it is difficult to imagine she would have changed her mind, and colleagues and friends say Sasina would not have consented.

Sasina was reported missing by her sister three days after her death, and K. emerged as a suspect two days later. K. dismembered Sasina’s body into ten parts. Police discovered her torso in a basin, while her limbs, hands, feet, and head were stored in trash bags. He also removed her fingertips and disposed of them by washing them down the shower drain, allegedly in an attempt to prevent identification of the victim.

Sasina's sister attended Monday’s hearing, while their father followed the proceedings from Ukraine through a phone link with an interpreter. The case is set to continue on February 24, when the prosecution will announce its proposed sentence.