Man appears in court accused of murdering 29-year-old woman on Boxing Day

A man has appeared in court for the first time accused of murdering a 29-year-old woman on Boxing Day.

Yahya Aboukar, 26, is charged with killing Kirsty Ashley, who was found at a house in Earlham Grove in Forest Gate, east London.

Cops were called just before midday on Sunday and found the 29-year-old’s body.

Detectives confirmed the name of the alleged victim yesterday (Tuesday, December 28) and that she had been beaten to death with a blunt object.

Aboukar was arrested at the scene and charged with murder.

He did not indicate a plea when he appeared in the dock at Thames Magistrates Court on Tuesday during a short hearing.

Appearing in a grey prison tracksuit and blue paper mask flanked by two dock officers, he spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and address.

Prosecutor Babatunde Alabi made no representations other than to remind magistrates Aboukar’s time in custody will automatically expire on June 28, when a judge will have to extend it if a trial has not already started.

His lawyer Tim Spooner also made no representations during the hearing, which lasted less than five minutes.

Aboukar will next appear at the Old Bailey later this week when a plea is expected to be taken by a judge.

Magistrate Rafael Salasmik told him: “You will next appear at the Old Bailey and a formal decision on your bail position will be taken then.”

He was remanded back into custody until the next court appearance.

A post-mortem examination took place on Monday, December 27, at East Ham Mortuary, and revealed the cause of death as blunt force trauma, police said.

The alleged victim and Aboukar know each other, according to the Met Police.

Ms Ashley’s next of kin have been told of her death and formal identification has taken place, police added.