Asylum Seeker Confronts Life Sentence for Mother's Brutal Railway Station Murder
An asylum seeker who brutally stabbed a mother to death at a deserted train station is facing a mandatory life sentence today. Deng Chol Majek, a Sudanese national, was convicted of murdering Rhiannon Skye Whyte in a frenzied and unprovoked attack at Bescot railway station in Walsall.
Fatal Stalking and Brutal Attack
The court heard how Majek stalked Ms Whyte from the Park Inn hotel, where she had been working for three months, to the nearby railway station. After finishing her shift, the mother was waiting for a train home when Majek launched his attack, stabbing her 23 times on the platform in October 2024.
Shockingly, witnesses reported seeing Majek dancing and laughing when he returned to the hotel where he was staying while his asylum application was being processed by the Home Office. This behaviour occurred shortly after the violent assault that would claim Ms Whyte's life.
Legal Proceedings and Age Dispute
Majek will be sentenced by High Court judge Mr Justice Soole at Coventry Crown Court this morning. The sentencing had been adjourned since last October due to uncertainties surrounding Majek's age. While German authorities have documentation suggesting he is 28, Majek claims to be only 20 years old.
The trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court revealed that Majek had entered Britain by small boat less than three months before the killing, leaving his pregnant wife behind in Sudan. During proceedings, he denied being the individual captured on CCTV footage tracking Ms Whyte from the hotel to the station.
Family's Heartbreaking Loss
Rhiannon Skye Whyte was rushed to hospital following the stabbing on October 20, 2024, but never regained consciousness and died three days later. Her sister, Alex Whyte, spoke emotionally outside the court after the trial concluded.
"On Sunday, October 20, 2024, my family were handed a life sentence when Deng Chol Majek launched a frenzied and unprovoked attack on Rhiannon for no apparent reason whatsoever," she stated. "Throughout this trial we have been given no reason as to why he chose Rhiannon, no accountability for his actions and no remorse."
Ms Whyte described her sister as having a "beautiful and bright future" that was tragically cut short. She emphasised that Rhiannon fought desperately for her life against what she called a "sick, twisted and cowardly human" who showed no regard for human life.
Unanimous Jury Verdict
Majek had denied both murder and possession of an offensive weapon, but jurors unanimously found him guilty on all charges. The case has drawn significant attention to issues surrounding:
- Asylum seeker accommodation and supervision
- Public safety at transport hubs
- Victim support for families of violent crime
- Legal processes for determining defendant age
The sentencing marks the conclusion of a harrowing legal process that has left a family devastated and a community questioning safety measures around migrant accommodation facilities and public transport infrastructure.
