A predator has admitted sexually assaulting and murdering young lawyer Zara Aleena as she walked home from a night out.
Jordan McSweeney, 29, attacked the 35-year-old just nine days after he was released from prison.
Zara was just minutes from her home in Ilford, East London in the early hours of June 26 when McSweeney dragged her into a driveway and carried out the ferocious assault.
McSweeney sexually assaulted, brutally kicked and stamped on the law graduate before making off with her mobile phone, keys and handbag and leaving her for dead, the prosecution said.
The court heard how had been released from prison on licence nine days before the ferocious attack.
Zara's devastated family said that she had believed in being able to walk everywhere.
Police were called to the scene in Cranbrook Road just before 2.45am where they found Zara with severe head injuries, partially naked and struggling to breathe. Zara died later that day in the hospital.
During the brief hearing, McSweeney, from Dagenham, east London, stood in the dock and stared at the floor as he entered his guilty pleas while Zara's family looked on in court.
CCTV footage obtained by police shows Zara walking onto Cranbrook Road after leaving a bar.
Moments later, McSweeney is seen following her before grabbing her from behind and dragging her into a driveway.
Neighbouring residents witnessed some of the attack but their view was partially obscured by a wall.
He was not known to Zara and had been working and staying at a funfair in nearby Valentines Park.
After the killing, other CCTV captured him returning to his caravan in Dagenham, where police recovered Zara's bloodstained clothes.
More bloodstains were found on a wall in Cranbrook Road with the defendant's fingerprints identified on them.
McSweeney had only recently been released from prison and had targeted more than one woman before he preyed on Zara, the court heard.
Prosecutor Oliver Glasgow KC had said McSweeney launched an "attack upon a lone female late at night making her way home, a woman who stood no chance".
At a previous hearing, the court was told McSweeney was a prolific offender and had been released from prison on licence on June 17 - just days before the murder.
He had been in prison for criminal damage, racially aggravated harassment and unauthorised possession of a knife in prison.
He has 28 convictions for 69 separate offences including burglary, theft of a vehicle, criminal damage, assaulting police officers and assaulting members of the public while on bail.
After his arrest, McSweeney refused to answer questions but told officers he had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
While in custody, he was also said to have threatened police officers.
Having been charged with murder, he was remanded into custody after a judge found he was a "substantial risk" to the public, especially lone women.
Farah Naz, Zara's aunt, has previously praised her as independent and big-hearted, saying she "was the joy, the light of our home" and that the family were committed to effecting lasting change in society.
Naz added: "Zara was not a woman who was unaware that there were dangers in the world. She did not imagine what happened to those women would happen to her. She didn't know she was going to be on this list because in her mind she took those precautions."
Zara had begun working at the Royal Courts of Justice five weeks before her death and was "the happiest she had ever been", her family said.
Detective Chief Inspector Dave Whellams, who led the investigation, said: “This was a brutal attack on a lone woman walking home on a residential street. She had every right to be there, to feel safe and to get home unharmed but instead she was the victim of shocking violence.
“My thoughts are with Zara’s family and friends. I cannot imagine the pain they have experienced over the past five months. It is clear she was truly loved by those who knew her.”
DCI Whellams added: “I would like to acknowledge the actions of passers-by and residents in the early hours of that morning. I am sure what they witnessed will stay with them forever and I want to acknowledge how they responded in a calm and brave way as they tried to come to Zara’s aid.
“I would also like to offer my thanks to those at the funfair in Valentines Park who assisted this investigation and who allowed us to carry out our enquiries in the days that followed the attack. I want to be clear that while McSweeney had been working and staying on the site, there is no information to suggest anyone else there had any knowledge of his terrible crimes.
“McSweeney is clearly a very dangerous individual and this plea means he is now certain to serve a lengthy sentence behind bars. Women in London are safer with him off the streets.”
Chief Superintendent Stuart Bell, who is in charge of policing in the east of London including Redbridge, said: “In the days and weeks following Zara’s awful murder we worked closely with community representatives, the local authority and our partners to provide support and reassurance. That vital work continues.
“I made it clear at the time of this attack and I reiterate it now - women should not have to change their behaviour and should be able to go about their lives, feeling safe, at any time of day or night.
“It is our job to achieve that and across the Met, we are absolutely committed to rising to that challenge. Our focus on making public spaces safer for everyone, but particularly women and girls, and identifying offenders who wish to do them harm, is relentless. While we are achieving good results we know there is much more work to do.
“We will continue to engage with residents, with their elected representatives and with our partners to find realistic solutions to problems or vulnerabilities identified locally so that we can make changes that have a genuine impact on safety in our community.
“I would join DCI Whellams in praising the response of local people who came to Zara’s aid after she was attacked and to all those who have shown the strength, resilience and leadership to guide the community in the months since.”
Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb adjourned sentencing until December 14.
She told McSweeney: "You pleaded guilty to very serious matters. I'm sure you appreciate the kind of sentence you will receive.
"But I will listen very carefully to the Crown's opening of the case and the submissions on your behalf so it's in your interests to cooperate with those representing you."
