Migrant hotel worker was ‘barged into’ by asylum seeker ‘hours before stabbing her to death’

An asylum seeker accused of stabbing a hotel worker to death with a screwdriver was allegedly seen on CCTV shoulder barging into her hours before the attack, a court has heard.

Rhiannon Whyte, 27, who worked at Walsall’s Park Inn hotel, was stabbed to death 23 times on a deserted train platform after finishing her shift in October last year, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.

Deng Chol Majek, a Sudanese asylum seeker who was staying at the hotel, has been accused of murdering the mum after allegedly ‘tracking’ to the nearby Bescot Stadium station following the end of her shift at 11pm.

Eleven of the stab wounds went through into Ms Whyte’s skull, while there were other wounds to her chest and left arm.

One injury to her skull damaged the brain stem, which caused her death.

Footage played in court allegedly shows Majek barging into Ms Whyte as he walked past her and two other colleagues out of the hotel.

Duty manager Claire Taylor-Bevans added that ‘the resident we are talking about’ had ‘brushed past my arm and knocked Rhiannon’s arm’ as they returned inside the hotel.

The witness continued: ‘I looked at her (Rhiannon) and said “what happened?” and she said “He’s just knocked me’. I can remember her saying ‘What the f***?”‘

Mrs Taylor-Bevans said she saw Majek staring at staff in an ‘intimidating manner’ in the hours before the attack, with hotel chef Louise Brittle saying it was like he was ‘planning something’.

She told the court she saw a tall, dark-skinned man sitting at a high table, and wearing a silver top with the hood up, during her shift from 2pm to 10pm on October 20.

She said: ‘He was sitting relaxed in a high chair with one arm on the table and his foot on a bench… just staring.

‘He was just staring through us … like eyes wide open and he just couldn’t take his eyes off any of us.’

After learning Ms Whyte had been killed, Mrs Brittle was shown an image of the man who had been arrested.

‘I actually asked for the image,’ she told the court. ‘I was shown the exact image that I still have in my mind. It was of the person sitting opposite the bar area that night, staring at us all.’

Ms Whyte’s friend said she was on the phone with her as she was attacked, ‘hearing her scream’ before the line went dead.

Opening the case on Tuesday, prosecutor Michelle Heeley KC said: ‘Ms Whyte had been talking to her friend, it went silent.

‘Her friend heard a scream, then another scream and the phone went dead at 11.19pm.’

The defendant is from Sudan, Africa, and insists he is 19 – but the prosecution say there are ‘doubts’ over his age.

She called a friend at 11.04pm and was seen on CCTV walking to the station at 11.08pm.

Jurors were told that two minutes later, Majek was allegedly captured on CCTV walking behind Ms Whyte.

Ms Whyte entered the station’s car park and walked towards the platform, with the defendant allegedly just 90 seconds behind her.

Majek is said to have then ‘closed the gap’ between the pair to 30 seconds as the mum reached the empty platform at 11.13pm.

It was then that Majek attacked her with the screwdriver while she was on the phone to her friend, Ms Heeley alleged.

After the ‘vicious’ attack, the defendant is said to have gone to a local shop and returned to the Park Inn hotel at 12.13am.

Majek denies murder and possession of an offensive weapon. The trial continues.

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