On the evening of October 20, 2024, a seemingly ordinary shift at the Park Inn Hotel in Walsall, England, ended in tragedy, setting the stage for a murder trial that has since gripped the Black Country community. The case, now unfolding at Wolverhampton Crown Court, centers on Deng Chol Majek, a 19-year-old asylum seeker from Sudan, accused of murdering 27-year-old hotel worker Rhiannon Skye Whyte in a brutal attack at Bescot Stadium railway station.
The prosecution, led by Michelle Heeley KC, laid out a harrowing account for the jury. According to BBC and BirminghamLive, CCTV footage presented in court showed Majek loitering in the hotel’s reception, his gaze fixed on Whyte throughout the evening. The Park Inn, at the time, was being used to house asylum seekers, with Whyte having worked there for about three months, helping with tasks ranging from cleaning to serving food. No one, her colleagues attested, could recall any serious dispute between Whyte and Majek or any other resident. The only incident mentioned was a minor issue about broken biscuits—nothing that could have foreshadowed what was to come.
When Whyte finished her shift at 11:00 pm, she left the hotel to catch a train home. CCTV captured Majek following her out, closing the gap as she walked toward the deserted platform at Bescot Stadium station. Prosecutor Heeley told the court, “He had been hanging around waiting for her to leave and waited until she was on her own before he followed her.”
As Whyte made her way to the platform, she called a friend at 11:04 pm. The chilling sequence that followed was pieced together from CCTV and the friend’s account. Whyte’s friend heard her scream, then another scream, before the line went dead at 11:19 pm. “Her friend heard the attack,” Heeley told jurors, according to BirminghamLive. “CCTV shows Ms Whyte walking from the hotel to the station, she is seen at 11:08 pm with the defendant following behind her at 11:10 pm. She entered the train car park and 90 seconds later the defendant followed her, she then walked over the bridge, the defendant had closed the gap and by now was just 30 seconds behind her. She reached the platform at 11:13 pm – no one else was on the platform.”
It was here, the prosecution alleges, that Majek launched a "vicious and frenzied attack," stabbing Whyte 23 times with a cross-headed screwdriver—11 times to the skull, with one wound damaging her brain stem and causing her death. The murder weapon was never found, despite police efforts. Whyte also suffered wounds to her chest and arm, suggesting she tried to defend herself. “There was a lot of blood because of the vicious nature of this attack,” Heeley told the court. “Most of the stab injuries were to her head but some were to the left side of her chest and left arm, indicating she had tried to fend off her attacker.”
After the attack, CCTV showed Majek running from the platform with Whyte’s mobile phone, which he later discarded in a river. He then stopped at a local shop to buy alcohol before returning to the hotel. According to Sky News and BBC, Majek was seen on hotel CCTV dancing and laughing, "clearly excited about what he had done." The prosecution emphasized this behavior, arguing it revealed Majek’s state of mind after the crime.
Ms Whyte’s body was discovered by a train driver who arrived at the station at 11:24 pm. The driver saw a figure slumped on the platform and, together with a hotel employee, tried to help her. Tragically, Whyte never regained consciousness and died in hospital three days later, on October 23, 2024.
Forensic evidence presented to the jury further tied Majek to the scene. Whyte’s blood was found on Majek’s clothing, sandals, and jewelry, all of which were seized by police. DNA analysis also revealed Whyte’s DNA under Majek’s fingernails, reinforcing the prosecution’s case. "His clothes have her blood on, his fingernails have her DNA under them, she had injuries from where she tried to defend herself," Heeley told the jury, as reported by BirminghamLive.
Majek, who claims to be 19 and originally from South Sudan, has denied charges of murder and possession of an offensive weapon. Assisted by an Arabic interpreter speaking a Sudanese dialect, he has pleaded not guilty, maintaining that he did not murder Whyte, though he acknowledges being present at the hotel on the night of the attack.
Throughout the trial, which began in October 2025 and is expected to last about three weeks, the prosecution has maintained that the evidence is overwhelming. "We say you can be sure it was this defendant and no one else," Heeley asserted. The defense has yet to present its case, but the judge, Mr Justice Soole, reminded jurors to "keep an open mind as you go along."
Whyte’s family, in a statement following her death, described her as “selfless... brave, quirky, funny” and always there for other people. The loss has sent shockwaves through her community and colleagues at the Park Inn, who remember her as a dedicated worker with a kind heart.
The trial has also prompted broader discussions about the safety of asylum accommodation, the responsibilities of hotels used for this purpose, and the challenges of integrating vulnerable populations. While the prosecution’s case is built on forensic evidence, CCTV footage, and witness testimony, the defense’s arguments—and the jury’s eventual verdict—remain to be seen.
As the community awaits the outcome, the memory of Rhiannon Whyte, the circumstances of her death, and the questions raised by this case continue to resonate far beyond the courtroom walls.
