Gurdeep Garcha KC is defending a 19 year old man who is standing trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court accused of the murder of a 27 year old woman who worked at a hotel which provided accommodation for asylum seekers.
The defendant is an asylum seeker, originally from Sudan. He had been staying at the Park Inn Hotel in Walsall for several months.
The deceased has worked at the hotel for a similar period. It is the prosecution case that in October 2024, having finished her shift just after 11pm; she was followed by the defendant as she walked to the nearby Bescot Railway Station. There, whilst on the platform, she was attacked with a screwdriver in a vicious and frenzied manner, which left her with injuries which were unsurvivable. Sadly, she died in hospital 3 days later.
The defendant denies that he is the assailant and asserts that he has been wrongly identified.
The trial is expected to last two weeks. It is to be heard by a High Court Judge.
The case has attracted widespread publicity, both locally and nationally. Some links to the case can be found below.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14022895/sister-stabbed-death-job-asylum-seeker-hotel.html