You’re Rudy Guède. Why would you break in to Meredith’s house. For money? Why not break in to a wealthier house with more valuable items? These were students with few valuables.

If you’re going to commit a burglary and risk prison time, you might as well try to burgle a house which is worth the potential time in jail.

If you have decided on committing such a burglary, for purely financial reasons, then it is a serious leap and escalation to sexual assault and murder in terms of potential consequences. This is something all burglars would and do extensively consider. No burglar wants to do jail time for murder.

So, why break in to the house at an incredibly incovenient point (2nd story window) and then not steal anything other than credit cards and Merediths mobile phones.

How would Rudy know that Amanda wouldn’t be there that night? Or anyone else for that matter? Why wouldn’t Rudy assume that Meredith and Amanda would be coming home, or would already in the home especially if he committed the burglary late at night.

If, on the other hand, Rudy wanted to murder Meredith (assuming Amanda not involved)

Again, how would Rudy know that Meredith wouldn’t be alone that night, and that Amanda wasn’t coming back to the flat? If it was that he wanted to rape Meredith because he was sexually attracted to her, well he openly admitted that he was more interested in Amanda then Meredith. 

Rudy also didn’t have a criminal history prior to this. It’s not like he was a veteran burglar / violent offender.

Rudy had far less of a motive to kill Meredith than Amanda. 

What motive could Rudy have had to kill Meredith?