University News Last updated 09 March
A documentary exploring one of the UK’s most chilling unsolved murders - and featuring the insight of leading criminologist and Birmingham City University lecturer Dr Mohammed Rahman - is currently gripping audiences on Netflix.
The programme explores the brutal killing of Scottish banker Alistair Wilson, who was shot on the doorstep of his family home in Nairn, Scotland, in 2004.
“The case is one of the most unusual and troubling unsolved murders in the UK,” said Dr Rahman, whose research specialises in serious organised violence and crime.
Although the case has been characterised as a suspected contract killing, no one has ever been charged.
For Dr Rahman, the documentary was a rare chance to bring academic research into a live criminal case.
His work between 2014 and 2017 examined the psychology of so-called “hitmen” - how they justify extreme violence, the methods they use, and how contract killings operate within organised crime.
“My research has long examined how contract killers rationalise and operationalise serious violence,” said Dr Rahman.
“The documentary provided an important opportunity to bring that academic insight into a live and still deeply significant case.”
The killing of Wilson, he explains, contains several hallmarks historically linked to contract hits.
“My contribution to the documentary was to apply established criminological research to help contextualise what we know - and what remains uncertain - about the offence,” he said.
“I hope viewers see how criminological research can help make sense of complex crimes. Even when cases remain unsolved, research can highlight patterns and dynamics that deepen our understanding of serious violence.”
Several documentaries have examined the killing of Alistair Wilson, including the BBC’s Big Cases: The Doorstep Murder.
Murder on the Doorstep is currently available to watch on Netflix.