By Charlotte Webster-
An asylum seeker murder trial began on Tuesday, where a jury heard harrowing details of an attack in which a hotel worker was allegedly stabbed more than times with a screwdriver and left for dead on a railway platform.
Rhiannon White. Pic: British Transport Police/PA
Deng Chol Majek, who is from Sudan and claims to be , is accused of murdering Rhiannon Skye Whyte, , at Bescot Stadium station in Walsall, West Midlands. Wolverhampton Crown Court was told that Majek inflicted 23 stab wounds, primarily targeting her head, in the brutal attack.
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Prosecutor Michelle Heeley KC opened the Crown’s case, outlining how Majek followed Ms. Whyte from the Park Inn hotel, where he was housed as an asylum seeker, on October last year. Ms. Whyte had just finished her shift helping with cleaning and serving food at the hotel, which was being used to accommodate asylum seekers.
Jurors were shown CCTV footage which tracked Majek following Ms. Whyte as she left the premises and walked toward the station. Heeley told the court, “He followed her down on to the train platform at the Bescot Stadium station and then he attacked her. Stabbing her over and over again with a screwdriver.” The prosecution argues that this calculated pursuit demonstrates his guilt in the matter.
During the evening shift, one of Ms. Whyte’s co-workers noticed Majek acting suspiciously, noting he seemed to be staring intently at Rhiannon and other women working with her. No one could recall any prior issue or incident that would explain his behaviour toward her.
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CCTV footage clearly showed the defendant hanging around the hotel’s reception area, persistently watching Ms. Whyte throughout the evening. He subsequently changed into a distinctive jacket and sandals, then waited around the reception until she departed alone. “CCTV tracks the defendant all the way,” Ms. Heeley confirmed, stating Majek “waited until she was on her own before he followed her” from the hotel to the station. This evidence is crucial to the asylum seeker murder trial proceedings.
Ms. Whyte was speaking to a friend on the phone when the attack began. Her friend heard two distinct screams before the line went dead. Minutes later, a train driver pulling into the station noticed a figure slumped on the platform. A train guard for the train attempted to help Ms. Whyte, as did an employee who came from the hotel, but the victim was too seriously injured. Ms. Whyte died three days later in the hospital, surrounded by her family, who paid tribute to her as the “most selfless person.”
Following the assault, the prosecution detailed Majek’s lack of remorse. Majek allegedly went to a shop to buy a drink, threw Ms. Whyte’s phone into a nearby river, and then returned to the hotel. There, he was reportedly seen dancing and laughing, indicating he was “clearly excited about what he had done.”
This evidence presents a chilling picture to the jury in the ongoing asylum seeker murder trial. Majek denies both murder and possessing a screwdriver as an offensive weapon.
The trial continues at Wolverhampton Crown Court, covering a case that has sparked significant public interest regarding the safety of workers in asylum accommodation and broader UK crime policy.
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