The man who killed Zara Aleena has been jailed for life after being convicted of murder

Jordan McSweeney has been sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of murdering and sexually assaulting Zara Aleena. The 29-year-old must serve at least 38 years in prison.

Zara was killed in an attack in East London on Sunday 26th June 2022, ten minutes from her home. She suffered serious head injuries and later died in hospital. Zara was a University of Westminster law graduate who gained her postgraduate diploma in legal practice last year.

via SWNS

Jordan McSweeney, 29, followed Zara at night before attacking and leaving her to die on the driveway of a home in Ilford, London. McSweeney stamped and strangled Zara Aleena to death in the early hours of June 26th, nine days after he had been released from prison on licence. The “savage and brutal attack” was caught on CCTV, while McSweeney has been seen following a number of other women earlier in the evening.

Prosecutor Oliver Glasgow KC gave various aggravating factors that had been identified by the prosecution. He said: “The planning and premeditation of the attack; the suffering inflicted on Zara Aleena; the location of the attack; Jordan McSweeney’s previous convictions and the offence was committed while he was on licence.”

McSweeney pleaded guilty to Zara’s murder and sexual assault and was sentenced at the Old Bailey today. Zara Aleena’s grandmother, Rashida Parreen said she feels “completely broken” over the death of her first grandchild. Zara’s aunt, Farah Naz said her family’s lives have been “destroyed”.

Defence barrister George Carter-Stephenson KC said McSweeney “is truly sorry for what he has done” and that Jordan McSweeney’s “tears at the police station can carry remorse.”

Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb told the court how much Zara meant to her family. Zara’s values were  “entirely the opposite” of McSweeney’s. She also said Zara was her mother’s only child and “her death has broken that woman”. “Zara’s absence is being felt constantly by the entire family, the light has gone out from their lives,” she said.

Related stories recommended by this writer:

• ‘The last two years have been hell’: Georgia Harrison speaks out after Bear found guilty

• Stephen Bear found guilty of all counts against Love Island’s Georgia Harrison

• Student ‘anxious’ after uni suspends her for taking her baby to lectures

Featured image credit via SWNS.