A man who stabbed mother-of-two Shadika Patel to death in East Ham and attempted to murder another woman in Holloway has been jailed.

James Sinclair, 31, of Three Colt Street, Limehouse will serve at least 41 years in prison for the two unprovoked attacks on lone strangers after being sentenced today - Friday, July 8.

He was found guilty of the murder of Shadika Patel, 40, and the attempted murder of a 48-year-old woman on July 5 following a trial at the Old Bailey.

Sinclair was given a life sentence, with a minimum term of 41 years, for the murder and another life sentence, with at least 18 years’ imprisonment, for the attempted murder.

The two sentences will be served at the same time and the 830 days he spent on remand in custody will be taken off the total.

Det Ch Insp Mark Rogers, speaking after the sentencing hearing, said: "I am pleased with the length of the prison sentence, which reflects the severity of James Sinclair’s crimes.

"James Sinclair will now spend the majority of the rest of his life in prison and will no longer pose a threat to anyone on the streets of London."

The jury heard Shadika was stabbed repeatedly by Sinclair in Altmore Avenue, East Ham in the early hours of March 19, 2020.

She was taking a food parcel to her two teenage sons in the lead up to the first national coronavirus lockdown at the time, the Old Bailey heard.

The next day, Sinclair attacked the other woman in Belfont Walk, Holloway, leaving her with a number of serious injuries that required hospital treatment including a punctured lung.

Sinclair was arrested on 27 March after police released CCTV footage which showed him after the murder of Shadika.

He had pleaded not guilty to the charges of murder and attempted murder, refused to attend court during his trial and never gave an explanation for why he attacked the two women.

Det Insp John Marriott, the lead investigator, said: "James Sinclair’s actions have devastated the lives of Shadika’s friends and family and left her two teenage sons without a mother.

"It is incomprehensible why he chose to attack two lone women at night.

"Incidents such as this are rare and my team of detectives worked at pace to identify Sinclair before he could attack anyone else."