Man lay in wait for his wife near her parents' home before stabbing her to death: Coroner

In sentencing the man, District Judge Sharmila Sripathy-Shanaz noted the prolonged abuse and "escalation in offending behaviour".

SINGAPORE - The death of a 42-year-old woman who was repeatedly stabbed by her husband has been ruled an unlawful killing.

Delivering his findings in the coroner's inquiry into the deaths of the couple earlier this year, Coroner Prem Raj also said on Friday (Oct 29) that the man, 45, committed suicide by jumping from their flat in Punggol.

The Straits Times is not naming the couple to protect the identities of the children, who are protected under the Children and Young Persons Act.

The man, a food caterer, and the woman, a teacher, married in 2000, but had been living apart since Feb 15, 2020, after he grabbed his wife by the neck and pushed her against a wall in their home.

She took their children - two daughters and a son - to her parents' home in Tampines, while the estranged husband continued to live in the marital home in Punggol.

After she moved out, the man harassed her, repeatedly stalking and calling her and the police had to intervene on multiple occasions.

Later that month, the woman, who had started divorce proceedings, was granted an expedited order to restrain her husband from using family violence against her and their children.

She was also granted a personal protection order in March last year.

On Feb 10 morning this year, the man, who was armed with a knife, waited for his wife near her parents' block in Tampines.

When he spotted the woman, he approached her from behind and stabbed her 18 times in the chest, back and arms.

Eight of the chest wounds were fatal.

The man then fled and removed the long-sleeved black shirt he was wearing.

He returned home and barricaded himself in the flat using a cupboard and plastic chairs.

He moved a gas cylinder from the kitchen to the master bedroom and turned it on. All the windows in the flat were closed.

By then, police officers had gathered on the ground floor of the block and in the corridor outside the flat.

The man then climbed out of a window and jumped.

He was pronounced dead at Sengkang General Hospital later that morning.

Coroner Prem Raj said the couple had not been on speaking terms for some time and that the man was having great difficulty accepting that his marriage had broken down with little, if any, hope for reconciliation.

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