A man has been convicted of the murder of a hotel worker at a railway station platform. Deng Chol Majek, a Sudanese asylum seeker claiming to be 19, was staying at the Park Inn hotel in Walsall when he was accused of killing Ms. Whyte. The 27-year-old victim was fatally stabbed 23 times on October 20 last year and passed away in the hospital three days later. Ms. Whyte was attacked while waiting for a train home after work around 11:15 pm. During the trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court, jurors viewed CCTV footage showing Majek intentionally bumping into Ms. Whyte at the hotel entrance towards the end of her shift.
Subsequently, Majek was observed trailing Ms. Whyte into Bescot Stadium station and later seen leaving the platform. He was later spotted socializing with friends in a car park near the Park Inn hotel. A hotel housing officer noted a change in Majek’s demeanor, stating he appeared more content and jovial in the car park. Mobile phone footage presented to jurors captured Majek dancing with his friends on the way back to his hotel room.
Throughout the trial, Majek denied the charges of murder, possession of a screwdriver, and being present at the train station during the incident, claiming he was outside the hotel at the time. His testimony and court responses were interpreted by a Sudanese Arabic translator. Majek explained that a discrepancy in his age, listed as 27 in German records, was due to an error on an identification document, asserting that he left Sudan at 16.
Senior Investigator DCI Paul Attwell described the attack as brutal, cowardly, and unprovoked, expressing his relief at the verdict. He criticized Majek’s lack of remorse and the distress caused to Ms. Whyte’s family throughout the trial. He commended the family for their strength and support during the investigation, emphasizing the importance of remembering Ms. Whyte’s life rather than focusing on her killer.
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