Nigerian man jailed for life in UK after killing a mother of two in a shocking attack, Chukwuemeka Ahanonu, 24, has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 21 years and six months. The former university student attacked 56-year-old Nila Patel by punching, kicking, and stamping on her head after his car overturned near Leicester Royal Infirmary on June 24, 2025. The assault left Ms Patel with severe brain injuries, and she died in hospital two days later.
Ms Patel, a mother and a grandmother, had just gotten off a bus on her way home when she was targeted. Ahanonu, a stranger to her, initially denied murder and pleaded guilty to manslaughter, citing diminished responsibility. A Leicester Crown Court jury rejected this defense and convicted him of murder on March 23, 2026, after a month-long trial.
During sentencing on March 24, Judge Timothy Spencer KC described the attack as “shocking, brutal, and merciless.” He said Ahanonu chose his victim deliberately, citing her gender, size, and race. The judge referenced an earlier remark by Ahanonu, in which he called her and others “dirty Asians.”
Ahanonu, originally from Peckham in south-east London, sat in court wearing a grey jacket and tracksuit bottoms as Ms Patel’s children, Jaidan and Danika Patel, read statements describing the impact of the murder on their lives. “Nine months ago today you murdered our mother,” Mr Patel said. “The pain of losing her in this way is impossible to accept.” Danika Patel added that the “cruelty and randomness” of the attack had left her unable to make sense of it.
In court, Ahanonu’s defense argued he had no memory of the attack and was “shocked” when shown footage of his actions. His lawyer, Paul Raudnitz KC, stated that Ahanonu wished to express his sincere apologies. The judge, however, told him that he retained far more memory of the attack than he admitted.
The case revealed Ahanonu’s criminal background. At the time of the murder, he was receiving universal credit while operating a significant drugs business with potential earnings of £10,000 per month. He had also been released from prison a year earlier after serving part of a two-year sentence for possession of a machete and other offenses.
Ahanonu pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, possession with intent to supply class B drugs, and assaulting an emergency worker during his arrest. He was found not guilty of common assault against a woman in a separate London incident earlier on the day of the attack.
Outside court, Danika Patel emphasized that their mother was more than a case number. “She was a loving mother, a daughter, a sister, and a friend, and the heart of our family,” she said. “We are still trying to process the shock and trauma of losing mum in such a sudden and violent way.”
Detective Constable Rich Gamage of Leicestershire Police described the attack as “the most horrific, violent, and random” incident and highlighted the lasting trauma experienced by Ms Patel’s family.
The sentencing marks the end of a case that has shocked Leicester and drawn attention to the risks of random street violence. Ahanonu’s conviction and life sentence underscore the seriousness with which the court treated the killing of an innocent woman in public.
