Warning: This story contains references to suicide
SINGAPORE: A coroner's court on Monday (Feb 2) ruled an open verdict in the death of a 33-year-old woman who was found dead in her condominium unit by her boyfriend, who did not report it immediately.
Ms Nallur Yang Hui Ying has a long-term mental health history, including depression and suicidal ideation since her teenage years, the court heard.
She also had been diagnosed with substance use disorder and traces of likely illicit drugs had been found in her liver. Multiple linear scars suggestive of self-harming were also found on her body.
When the police searched her unit, they found handwritten suicide notes and pills, although none of the notes were written recently.
However, because of the advanced state of decomposition, blood samples could not be obtained and it was not possible to determine what exactly had caused Ms Yang's death.
State Coroner Adam Nakhoda said he was constrained to return an open verdict and urged anyone who comes across a death to report it immediately or call for medical help.
Although the circumstances surrounding her boyfriend's discovery of the body were suspicious, police investigations ultimately did not uncover any evidence of foul play.
The boyfriend, 34-year-old Jason Hong Kai Qi, was jailed for a week in November for a rare charge of failure to report death.
This had been downgraded from a charge of concealing a corpse.
He had gone over to her home on Apr 23, 2024, after failing to contact her, and found her lying motionless and covered with a blanket on her bed.
He attempted chest resuscitation on her, but when she failed to respond, he took his personal belongings and left.
He later texted his girlfriend's sister, saying she was uncontactable, but did not mention the death.
The sister visited the unit four days later with her sister's two children, who were in the custody of Ms Yang's ex-husband.
She noticed a foul smell and found her sister dead in her bed. She called for medical attention and paramedics confirmed her demise on Apr 27, 2024.
The coroner said this case stresses the need for anyone who comes across a death to report it as soon as reasonably practicable.
He said that even if a person does not report the death to the police, calling a doctor or paramedics will result in the death being reported if the medical professionals deem that it should be reported.
He repeated the remarks given by the judge who sentenced Hong, saying the purpose of the duty to report a death is to ensure the police are properly apprised of such a death so that investigations may be conducted without delay.
In this case, Hong's failure to report the death promptly meant there was a delay in investigative efforts, rendering the final cause of death unascertainable, said the coroner.
Continue reading...
SINGAPORE: A coroner's court on Monday (Feb 2) ruled an open verdict in the death of a 33-year-old woman who was found dead in her condominium unit by her boyfriend, who did not report it immediately.
Ms Nallur Yang Hui Ying has a long-term mental health history, including depression and suicidal ideation since her teenage years, the court heard.
She also had been diagnosed with substance use disorder and traces of likely illicit drugs had been found in her liver. Multiple linear scars suggestive of self-harming were also found on her body.
When the police searched her unit, they found handwritten suicide notes and pills, although none of the notes were written recently.
However, because of the advanced state of decomposition, blood samples could not be obtained and it was not possible to determine what exactly had caused Ms Yang's death.
State Coroner Adam Nakhoda said he was constrained to return an open verdict and urged anyone who comes across a death to report it immediately or call for medical help.
Although the circumstances surrounding her boyfriend's discovery of the body were suspicious, police investigations ultimately did not uncover any evidence of foul play.
The boyfriend, 34-year-old Jason Hong Kai Qi, was jailed for a week in November for a rare charge of failure to report death.
This had been downgraded from a charge of concealing a corpse.
He had gone over to her home on Apr 23, 2024, after failing to contact her, and found her lying motionless and covered with a blanket on her bed.
He attempted chest resuscitation on her, but when she failed to respond, he took his personal belongings and left.
He later texted his girlfriend's sister, saying she was uncontactable, but did not mention the death.
The sister visited the unit four days later with her sister's two children, who were in the custody of Ms Yang's ex-husband.
She noticed a foul smell and found her sister dead in her bed. She called for medical attention and paramedics confirmed her demise on Apr 27, 2024.
The coroner said this case stresses the need for anyone who comes across a death to report it as soon as reasonably practicable.
He said that even if a person does not report the death to the police, calling a doctor or paramedics will result in the death being reported if the medical professionals deem that it should be reported.
He repeated the remarks given by the judge who sentenced Hong, saying the purpose of the duty to report a death is to ensure the police are properly apprised of such a death so that investigations may be conducted without delay.
In this case, Hong's failure to report the death promptly meant there was a delay in investigative efforts, rendering the final cause of death unascertainable, said the coroner.
Continue reading...