🔗 Share this article

A woman stabbed repeatedly to her neck area in an unprovoked attack at a bus stop within Birmingham has passed away, authorities verified.

The deceased woman, who was 34, came under attack on Smallbrook Queensway street, just outside the Bullring shopping centre, shortly before 21:00 GMT on Friday, according to police statements.

Djeison Rafael, 21, was presented at Birmingham Magistrates Court Monday morning, facing charges for the violent incident.

Originally charged with attempted murder but following the woman's death charges were upgraded to include murder.

Police Response

The force said officers would be in the downtown area through Monday providing public assurance, and investigators were supporting the victim's relatives.

Detectives are appealing any eyewitnesses who might have observed Mr Rafael, who is described as a Black British national, reportedly dressed in an all-grey tracksuit, black hat, athletic shoes with a backpack.

Attack Site Details

The knife attack occurred near the Bullring shopping centre, across from the main entrance of New Street railway station.

Law enforcement confirmed they were treating it as a random violent act with investigators stating they were working to understand why it happened.

Eyewitness Reports

Shalini Doal, who works nearby, described the emergency response after completing her shift around 10 PM on Friday.

She characterized the location as extremely disorderly, and said co-workers reported hearing a commotion around 9 PM.

"A lot of co-workers take public transport, take the tram... our safety is at risk essentially, in the downtown area."

Ashley Birks, 25, from Stoke-on-Trent, mentioned visiting to Birmingham quite frequently to see his girlfriend who lives in the city, expressing concern about what had happened.

"It causes concern about my partner," he said.

"She lacks transportation and works at all of the big music venues... and to think something completely unprovoked occurred, understandably, it's horrible."