Zara Aleena killer wrongly classified, inquest told

Zara Aleena was murdered by Jordan McSweeney as she walked home

A newly qualified probation manager has told an inquest he accepts he should have assessed the killer of Zara Aleena as high risk to cause serious harm, instead of medium.

Jordan McSweeney, a sexual predator with 28 previous convictions, murdered the 35-year-old law graduate in Ilford, east London, on 26 June 2022.

He had been released from prison on licence nine days before.

Probation officer Austin Uwaifo told East London Coroner’s Court that McSweeney had “painted a false narrative” to him about his behaviour in custody.

The jury heard Mr Uwaifo had been asked to provide a risk assessment for the housing team on 10 June, and although he had referred to McSweeney as being a high risk in his report, he had gone on to record him as being a medium risk to the public.

Asked by the coroner to explain this, he said: “It may have been an oversight. I had not fully reviewed the risk.”

Mr Uwaifo said a high-risk assessment may have resulted in restrictions being placed on McSweeney, including a possible curfew.

At an earlier hearing, coroner Nadia Persaud said there had been 15 or 16 intelligence reports about McSweeney between March and October 2021, including a record of him allegedly assaulting others with improvised weapons and taking drugs, while on one occasion he was described as “too high to walk.”

Jordan McSweeney was released from prison on licence nine days before he killed Ms Aleena

But Mr Uwaifo told the jury that when he spoke to McSweeney, “he told me things were fine” during a video call from prison in February 2022.

He said he had not taken McSweeney’s account at face value, and had contacted his prison offender manager for more information, but admitted: “I should have followed that up, which I didn’t."

In a second video call meeting, on 7 June of that year, McSweeney told him he had abstained from drink and drugs in custody.

Mr Uwaifo said he did not check with the prison whether this was true.

On 17 June, McSweeney was released from prison on licence, but did not attend his initial probation appointment.

The inquest heard his mother had said he was passed out drunk.

But when asked if he had reviewed the risk assessment, Mr Uwaifo replied: “Not at the time, no.”

On 20 June, McSweeney failed to attend a second appointment, and his mother said she had not seen him since the day of his release.

The coroner suggested to Mr Uwaifo that, given the circumstances, “he should have been assessed as high risk of serious harm?”

“Yes”, replied Mr Uwaifo.

He said that if this had happened, McSweeney’s recall to prison would have been initiated that day.

Instead, he did not speak to a senior manager until two days later, and it was not until 24 June that the paperwork was signed off.

McSweeney was still at large on 26 June, when he murdered Zara Aleena.

The inquest continues.