A United Kingdom court has sentenced a 24-year-old Nigerian, Chukwuemeka Ahanonu, to life imprisonment for the killing of a 56-year-old woman, Nila Patel, in Leicester.
Ahanonu was convicted by a jury at Leicester Crown Court over the fatal attack, which occurred on June 24, 2025, along Infirmary Road.
Details from Leicestershire Police indicated that the incident happened shortly after the convict crashed his vehicle while reportedly under the influence of cannabis.
Authorities said he had been driving dangerously within Leicester city centre, ignoring traffic signals, veering across lanes and putting pedestrians at risk before the crash.
Following the accident, he reportedly abandoned his car and attacked Patel, who had just alighted from a bus and was heading home.
Police disclosed that items recovered from his vehicle included suspected cannabis worth over £3,000 as well as three mobile phones.
The defendant had earlier pleaded guilty to offences bordering on dangerous driving, possession of cannabis with intent to distribute, and assault on a police officer.
Patel sustained critical injuries, including a fractured skull and severe brain damage, and died two days later, prompting authorities to charge Ahanonu with murder.
The lead investigator, Detective Inspector Emma Matts, described the killing as “a brutal and senseless act carried out on an unsuspecting victim.”
“She had no connection whatsoever with the attacker and was merely returning home when the incident happened. The manner of his driving before the crash was alarming,” she said.
Matts also commended members of the public and hospital security personnel who intervened at the scene, noting that their quick response helped subdue the suspect and aided the investigation.
Meanwhile, in Ireland, two men identified as Francis Ogbuefi, 42, and Steven Silvester, 32, have been sentenced to a combined jail term for their involvement in a large-scale money laundering operation.
The pair were prosecuted after an investigation by the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau, with Ogbuefi receiving a nine-year sentence and Silvester jailed for seven and a half years.
