Rotherham FedEx worker who stabbed manager to death found guilty of murder
Ronald Sekanjako stabbed Philip David Woodcock to death after he was told he was being suspended from work
A FedEx worker in Rotherham who stabbed his manager to death after he was told he was being suspended from work has been found guilty of murder.
Ronald Sekanjako stabbed Philip David Woodcock in November 2022, after flying into a rage when he was told of the punishment.
Mr. Woodcock had come in to try and calm the situation, during a meeting with one of the warehouse managers.
It followed concerns Sekanjako had filled up his work van at a petrol station, without the means to pay.
Sekanjako objected to these allegations and became irate, at which point Philip came to try and help.
A jury at Sheffield Crown Court was told that as Philip took Sekanjako into his office to try to speak to him, Sekanjako slammed the door closed behind him, before stabbing Philip in the chest with a knife he had hidden in a jumper he was carrying.
Officers later found a second knife concealed by Sekanjako in the office and a hammer concealed down his sock.
Despite best efforts of colleagues at the FedEx warehouse on Rother Way in Hellaby, Rotherham, as well as police and ambulance staff, Philip was pronounced dead at the scene.
Following a trial which started on 6 November, Sekanjako, 49, of Bellhouse Road, has today (10 November) been found guilty of murder, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and three counts of possession of an offensive weapon.
Today, Philip’s family have further paid tribute to him. They said: "After a long and distinguished career, Phil was readying himself for quieter days away from the hustle and bustle of work. He was looking forward to a long and happy retirement, spending days with his wife and wider network of family and friends, doing all the things he'd planned to do.
"On 2 November 2022, all of our lives changed forever through a senseless act, the circumstances of which have haunted us as a family and many others since that day. We are tormented by imagining what our loving husband, dad and brother would have felt during his final moments; trapped, helpless and terrified.
"Our family has been left with a void that it is impossible to fill. He was snatched away from us in the prime of his life, doing what he did most - helping others. As a family, we ask that our privacy remains respected as we seek to continue to come to terms with the immense loss of losing Phil.”
Sekanjako will be sentenced on Monday November 13.