A schizophrenic woman who murdered her 8-years old daughter by repeatedly stabbing her in the neck has been acquitted of her murder charge due to her mental instability.
The 36-year-old woman killed her daughter because she was hearing voices in her head telling her that she was an evil spirit. During her trial, the judge found her incapable and suffering from mental illness, so they exonerated her of her murder charge.
The woman, who cannot be named under a gag order, was diagnosed with schizophrenia and was found to be of unsound mind at the time of the killing.
Since the perpetrator is dealing with mental health issues, she must be confined in a safe space, probably a mental facility or a correctional prison, and the case should be reported to the Home Affairs Minister.
The woman started dealing with the voices in her head in March 2021. The voices became louder over time, telling her that her food and water were being poisoned and that her elder daughter was an evil spirit.
She started behaving strangely and she believed her phone and laptop were being hacked and that people were following her and trying to harm her.
Two days before the murder and her arrest, the woman behaved weirdly and was caught on surveillance cameras aimlessly taking the MRT. On the morning of Aug 10, 2021, she began rambling incoherently, rattling off names of Chinese historical figures.
The other family members woke up to the cries of the other children and met the body of her older daughter, motionless on the floor. The perpetrator was naked and was holding a pair of scissors.
The woman’s brother saw a bloodstained knife on the floor and threw it towards the kitchen while his wife called the police.