SINGAPORE – The teen who then 16-year-old, killed his 13-year-old schoolmate using a combat axe in 2021 is appealing against his sentence.
The perpetrator – who cannot be named under the Children and Young Persons Act, committed the offence when he was 16 – was initially charged with murder, but it was later reduced to a charge of culpable homicide.
In December 2023, he pleaded guilty to the charge and was sentenced to 16 years in jail.
Mr. Sunil Sudheesan argued in court during the appeal on July 1st that the punishment imposed on the teenager was very harsh or burdensome. He stated that the teenager had been severely depressed when he conceived the irrational plan, and therefore, his culpability should be considered within that context.
While the teen had control over his physical acts and knew at the time that what he was doing was wrong, his mental illness was what had caused him to come up with the irrational plan, Mr Sudheesan stated in the court.
Legal Proceedings In River Valley High Murder Case
As the court heard the appeal, the teen, who is now 19, dressed in a white T-shirt remained expressionless in the dock.
Teen, then 16-year-old, who was a student at River Valley High School, used to buy several weapons, including a combat axe, between March and April 2021.
He was suffering from depression and had devised a plan to attack people at the school with the intention that the police would shoot him to death.
On July 19th around 11.15 am, 2021, He left his classroom and waited in the toilet, armed with the axe, where he repeatedly slashed the victim, Ethan Hun. Despite being schoolmates, the two did not know each other.
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There was a legal restriction preventing the public from knowing the name of the victim, which was removed by the High Court after Ethan’s parents requested it.
The parents also chose to forgive the attacker despite their sorrow. They emphasized that they wanted people to remember Ethan for his positive qualities—his kindness, compassionate nature, and love for peace—rather than focusing solely on the tragic circumstances of his death.
Mr Sudheesan said during the appeal on July 1 that the teenager’s irrational plan was also influenced by snuff videos—videos depicting actual scenes of human death—that the teen had watched.
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Following the incident, the teen has fully recovered from his depression, which has been in remission since September 2022.
Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Andre Chong argued that there was significant responsibility on the teen’s end, having decided to watch snuff videos when his rationality was not affected.
The DPP stated that if the teenager had not watched these videos, he would not have developed suicidal thoughts. He further mentioned that the teen was aware of his depression, had declined to seek help, and should have known to have been on guard against such material.
Mr. Sudheesan responded, “Depression is not like a tap, you can’t turn it on, you can’t turn it off.”
He added that depression can debilitate even the strongest individuals, and in the case of the teenager, he struggled to manage it effectively.
The case was postponed pending the judges’ decision.
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