Murdered Brit backpacker Grace Millaneâs chilling final hours
News of Grace Millaneâs death made headlines across the world in 2018 after it was revealed sheâd been strangled, murdered and dumped in a suitcase by Jesse Kempson â a man sheâd met on a dating app.
After graduating from the University of Lincoln, Grace, 21, headed on her next adventure and began a year-long trip backpacking across the world. Having spent six weeks in Peru, Grace made her way to New Zealand, though less than two weeks later she was strangled to death. ITV true crime series Social Media Murders looks into how Grace fell victim to a murderer, who is now serving a minimum of 17 years behind bars.
Screenshots of messages between Grace and Kempson on Tinder show how the depraved murderer lured her into joining him on a date, before heading to his hotel room and strangling her to death. In 2019, the conversation was released during a trial, in which Kempson was found guilty of murder.
Having met on the dating app, Kempson was first to send a message, writing: âHey Grace how are you?? Much planned for the weekend?â. In response, Grace mentioned that it was her birthday the following day and she didnât have any plans.
Kempson then suggested they go for a drink. Initially, Grace appeared reluctant and repeatedly said âmaybeâ. The killer then asked âmaybe yes??â, causing the university graduate to say that he needed to âconvinceâ her.
He then put forward a âcool Mexican placeâ they could go to and Grace added that she was âmaybeâ interested in drinks. When her killer recommended another venue, she explained: âI haven’t said yes yet?â. Kempson replied: âyou haven’t said no eitherâ.
On the evening of December 1, 2018, the pair headed on a date in Auckland and greeted one another with a hug. Their first stop was a burger restaurant and bar where they stayed for an hour-and-a-half before heading to a Mexican restaurant less than a block away. While there they ordered jugs of sangria, Grace had messaged her friend to say âI click with him so wellâ.
Cameras later captured Grace and Kempson walking and intermittently holding hands as they made their way to another venue, Bluestone Room, where they sat at a table inside the front door. They spent just over an hour at the venue, during which the man leaned in to kiss Grace.
The pair then headed to the CityLife hotel where her date was staying. CCTV showed Grace following him out of the hotel lifts and into the corridor at 9.41pm. It was the last time she was seen alive.
During her travels, Grace had been in constant contact with her family back home. After she failed to contact her loved ones and reply to their birthday messages on December 2, the Brit was reported missing. Grace was assumed missing and her father flew to New Zealand during the search. Sadly her body was later found in a shallow grave in a forest outside Auckland.
Kempson was first interviewed by police after a detective noticed a message heâd written on her Facebook page on December 1 at 9.29pm that read: âBeautiful, very radiantâ. He claimed theyâd gone their separate ways after their date, but later admitted she was dead and denied murdering her.
During the three-week trial, Kempson claimed that Grace had died during a ârough sex gameâ gone wrong. However, a jury unanimously convicted him of murder and the judge sentenced him to life in prison with a minimum period of 17 years behind bars before he can be paroled.
âGrace was taken away from us in the most brutal fashion a year ago and our lives have been ripped apart,â Graceâs late father David Millane said. âShe did not deserve to be murdered in such a barbaric way during her gap year. Grace was our sunshine and she will be missed forever.â
In October 2023, Graceâs mother Gillian said Kempson had âdestroyed her familyâ. She said: âI don’t think about him, I don’t care what happens to him. He came into our life and destroyed our family. I don’t care about his name, I don’t care about him.â
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