A Sudanese asylum seeker has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 29 years after being found guilty of murdering a young hotel worker in the West Midlands in one of the most brutal killings to grip the region. Deng Chol Majek was handed the sentence on 30 January 2026 at Coventry Crown Court after a trial that heard disturbing details of the attack.
The court heard that Majek followed 27-year-old Rhiannon Skye Whyte, a mother of one who worked at the Park Inn Hotel in Walsall, to Bescot Stadium railway station on the night of 20 October 2024 after she finished her shift. She was stabbed 23 times with a screwdriver in what prosecutors described as a “frenzied, sadistic and unprovoked attack.” Majek inflicted at least 19 wounds to her head, including a fatal injury to her brain stem. Whyte succumbed to her injuries and died in hospital three days later, surrounded by her family.
CCTV evidence played a key role in the case. It showed Majek following Ms Whyte from the hotel and carrying out the attack on a deserted platform. After the assault, he was captured on CCTV walking to a nearby area and buying beer, and later returning to the hotel where he was seen laughing and dancing in the car park despite emergency services being on the scene.
The judge, Mr Justice Soole, praised the overwhelming strength of the evidence including DNA and imagery but noted there was no known motive for the killing. During the sentencing hearing, he told Majek he had caused “devastation across generations” for Whyte’s family, expressing that no sentence could truly compensate for their loss.
During the court proceedings, Majek disputed his age, claiming to be 19, but age assessments established that he was in his mid-20s at the time of the murder. He continued to deny responsibility for the killing even after conviction.
Rhiannon Whyte’s family made emotional statements in court, describing the attack as cruel and senseless, and emphasising the deep impact her death has had on her young son, relatives, and friends. They also branded Majek as “demonic and inhuman.”
Senior investigators from British Transport Police described the murder as “brutally and senselessly” carried out, and paid tribute to Whyte’s life and legacy, highlighting her kindness, energy and devotion as a young mother and worker.
The sentence, which means Majek will serve a minimum of 29 years before consideration for parole, brings a legal close to a case that shocked communities in Walsall and reignited debate on asylum seeker screening and public safety in the UK.
English