Man who murdered Bradford school worker 'Bori' Benko as she slept jailed for life

A man who stabbed a young school worker 40 times as she slept before going on to carry out a second near-fatal attack on her neighbour has been jailed for life.

Zbigniew Soj, 24, had been drinking when he launched the unprovoked attack on 24-year-old Borbala "Bori" Benko as she lay in her bed in Bradford on 21 November last year.

After murdering her he then stabbed and attempted to strangle 21-year-old Klaudia Rogozinka in a neighbouring flat in the same block where he lived on Sherbourne Road, Great Horton.

Bradford Crown Court heard Miss Rogozinka, who suffered nine knife wounds, managed to dial 999.

Soj, who has a depressive illness, had been drinking heavily while on medication at the time of the attack and was likely to have sexually assaulted Miss Benko, the court was told.

But police said he had no history of violence and the attack was unpredictable.

Senior investigating officer, Det Chief Insp Vanessa Rolfe, of West Yorkshire Police's Homicide and Major Enquiry Team said: "This was an horrific and spontaneous attack on two young women as they slept in their own home. 

"Soj was someone they trusted and no-one could ever have predicted that he would do this.

"Bori had her whole life ahead of her and this was cruelly taken away by Soj."

Soj pleaded guilty to murder and attempted murder and was jailed for life with a minimum term of 31 years. 

In a statement, Miss Benko's family said she had a bright future ahead of her.

They said: "She devoted her life to the development and teaching of young children. She lived her life according to Christian values.

"She managed to gain the children’s trust and love within seconds. She deeply believed in equality between people, in the power of love, and she proved this every day.

"Her dream was to establish a school for children with special needs in Hungary.

"As she talked about it: 'I will build an inclusive school, and it will be a cool place!' So, we need to make her dreams come true, and we have established the Bori Benko Foundation for children in Hungary to fulfil her dream making this world a better place."

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