Asylum seeker on trial for murder of hotel worker stabbed at station

An asylum seeker on trial in Wolverhampton denied he killed a hotel worker who was fatally stabbed on a train station platform in October last year, telling jurors he was not at the scene and had no reason to harm her. Prosecutors say Deng Chol Majek, who says he is 19 and is from Sudan, followed 27 year old Rhiannon Skye Whyte from the Park Inn hotel in Walsall to Bescot Stadium station on the night of October 20, 2024, and stabbed her more than 20 times. Ms Whyte died in hospital three days later.

Jurors were shown CCTV footage the prosecution says captured Majek following Ms Whyte as she left the hotel after a late shift and then leaving the scene with her mobile phone, which investigators say he later discarded in the River Tame. Police divers recovered the phone during the investigation, the court heard. Prosecutors also told the jury that forensic testing found Ms Whyte's blood on clothing, footwear and a ring worn by Majek and that her DNA was recovered from under the defendant's fingernails.

Giving evidence, Majek denied being at Bescot station when the attack occurred and said he had no disputes with staff at the hotel where he had been accommodated with other asylum...