Zara Aleena: Sexual predator admits murdering law graduate after trying to rape her minutes from her home
A sexual predator has admitted murdering law graduate Zara Aleena, who was brutally kicked and stamped on, then left for dead.
Jordan McSweeney had only recently been released from prison and had targeted more than one woman before he preyed on the 35-year-old as she walked home from a night out early on Sunday 26 June.
McSweeney, 29, of Dagenham, Essex, pleaded guilty to murder and sexual assault.
He had launched an “attack upon a lone female late at night making her way home, a woman who stood no chance”, said prosecutor Oliver Glasgow KC.
During the brief court hearing, the defendant stood in the dock and stared at the floor as he entered his guilty pleas while Ms Aleena’s family looked on.
The defendant had dragged Ms Aleena into a driveway in Cranbrook Road, Ilford, east London, where he subjected her to a ferocious assault.
He sexually assaulted her and made off with her mobile phone, keys and handbag, the prosecution said.
Emergency services were called after she was found with severe head injuries, struggling to breathe and partially naked.
She died in hospital, and a post-mortem examination found she had suffered multiple serious injuries.
Video footage from the area showed McSweeney appearing to target other women before he followed Ms Aleena.
In a moving tribute following her death, Ms Aleena’s family said that she loved to walk everywhere and they called for more to be done to prevent violence against women and girls.
After his arrest, McSweeney refused to answer questions but told officers he had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
While in custody, he was also said to have threatened police officers.
Having been charged with murder, he was remanded into custody after a judge found he was a “substantial risk” to the public, especially lone women.
At a previous hearing, the court was told McSweeney was a prolific offender and had been released from prison on licence just days before the murder.
Zara Aleena was only minutes from her front door when she was attacked and killed
He had been in prison for criminal damage, racially aggravated harassment and unauthorised possession of a knife in prison.
He has 28 convictions for 69 separate offences including burglary, theft of a vehicle, criminal damage, assaulting police officers and assaulting members of the public while on bail.
Ms Aleena’s family described her as independent, big-hearted and a joy.
Her aunt Farah Naz had said her niece had been conscious of the dangers for women after the murders of Bibaa Henry, Nicole Smallman, Sarah Everard and Sabina Nessa.
Jordan McSweeney appearing by video link from HMP Thameside during a hearing at the Old Bailey, London, where he is accused of murdering law graduate Zara Aleena (Elizabeth Cook/PA)
Flowers were left after the vigil (Beresford Hodge/PA)
