SINGAPORE — A young man was sentenced to six years’ jail on Monday (September 30) after pleading guilty to culpable homicide not amounting to murder over the stabbing death of his father in 2022.

Sylesnar Seah Jie Kai, then 19 years old, had slashed his father with two knives after a heated argument.

Fearing his father would kill him after he had initially stabbed the older man twice, Seah chased after his father and killed him by repeating slashing at his neck and head.

Seah later told police that he had been trying to decapitate his father as he believed this would result in a quick death, which is what he wanted for the older man.

The court also heard on Monday that the youth suffered from two psychiatric illnesses — chronic adjustment disorder with depressed mood and other specified depressive disorder — at the time of the offence.

Seah had been charged in 2022 with murder, but had the charge reduced.

What happened

The court heard that the offender was the youngest of three children and lived with his elder sister, mother and father at Block 653 Yishun Avenue 4 on the fifth floor.

Seah’s father, 47-year-old Eddie Seah Wee Teck, had a strained relationship with his wife and children as he was verbally abusive towards them, stated court documents.

“The deceased drank alcohol on a regular basis and, when intoxicated, often verbally abused his wife and the accused. He also physically abused his children when they were younger,” according to court documents.

The court heard that on October 10, 2022 at about 6pm, the offender had returned home and headed for a shower. His mother left the flat to visit her parents and care for her father, while his father was drinking alcohol.

After the offender finished his shower, Eddie Seah asked him to call his mother to ask her to come back to the flat. The young man said he would do so after his dinner, but his father insisted he do so immediately.

An argument broke out, as Eddie Seah taunted his son, calling him a coward among other things. He also told the youth in Mandarin: “Do you dare to chop someone with a knife?”

Feeling angry and humiliated by his father’s taunts, the youth took a kitchen knife and slashed his father twice on his right chest in the living room.

He then returned to his bedroom, while his father left the flat.

Court documents stated that the offender became afraid that if he did not kill his father, the older man would kill him the next day. So he went back to the kitchen and took two knives.

“The accused decided that he needed to arm himself with two knives in order to overcome the deceased, who used to be involved in gang fights in his younger days,” stated court documents.

The youth then left the flat to look for his father, and spotted him walking towards the fifth-floor lift lobby of the housing estate. There, he slashed his father’s head and neck multiple times.

Eddie Seah pushed his son towards the staircase, where they fought over the knives.

Managing to grab hold of one of the knives, Eddie Seah headed to the fourth floor and approached his neighbour’s unit. However, he collapsed shortly after.

The youth then shouted for someone to call the police, before laying down on the floor to wait for the paramedics and police.

Psychiatric conditions

When police officers arrived at the scene at 7.16pm, the youth told them he had killed his father, and he was immediately arrested.

He also said in police statements that he aimed the attacks at Eddie Seah’s neck because he thought that “decapitation was one of the most instantaneous ways to die... which was what (he) wanted for (his) father”.

An autopsy found the cause of death to be a haemorrhage due to incised wound to the neck. The man had at least 24 incised wounds on his head, neck, chest and abdomen, back and limbs.

The youth also was assessed by the Institute of Mental Health in October and November 2022, where he was diagnosed with chronic adjustment disorder with depressed mood and another specified depressive disorder.

A doctor from the institute found that although Seah was not of unsound mind, the other specified depressed disorder had “reduced his capacity to know the wrongfulness of his acts and his capacity to control his actions”.

In another report earlier this year, the youth’s other specified depressive disorder was found to be in remission. His risk of reoffending was also found to be low.

Remorse

Deputy Public Prosecutors Derek Ee and Jordy Kay told the court that people cannot take justice into their own hands, even if they find themselves in “unfortunate situations” like the offender’s, reported news site CNA.

The prosecution had sought a jail term of seven to 12 years.

“We accept it was a terrible situation for the accused to be in, but even if one finds themselves in that situation ... (with) a significant source of stress at home, violence by taking that person’s life is not the answer and it’s not justified,” said DPP Ee.

He also told the court that despite Sylesnar Seah’s young age and mental disorder, he must “bear the consequences of his actions”.

Seah’s lawyers pleaded for leniency and sought a jail term of not more than five years.

He was represented by Ms Joyce Khoo and Mr Sunil Suheesan from Quahe Woo & Palmer LLC.

“Our client had a troubled childhood where he, his elder siblings, and his mother shared a tumultuous relationship with his father,” said the lawyers.

They also highlighted several instances where the father had acted up, including fights with the mother and several instances where the man had directed misogyny and verbal abuse at the family.

Eddie Seah would also boast about being a gang member, and would laugh if he upset his children, said the lawyer.

“This unfortunate tragedy was driven by a well of preexisting unhappiness within the family stemming from our client’s father,” he said.

“This came to an unfortunate conclusion when our client’s father’s behaviour triggered an uncharacteristic response from our client which owed a large part to our client’s mental illnesses,” said the lawyers, adding that Sylesnar Seah is remorseful for his actions.

The lawyers added that Sylesnar Seah had felt “overwhelmed” when his father collapsed, and told his father that he “hated (him) for a while”.

In response, the older man said: “I’m sorry. I love you. Please forgive me.” This irritated and upset the youth, they said.

Sylesnar Seah had also tried to kill himself and put a knife on his own neck, but his father told him not to, the lawyers added.

Anyone found guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder face life imprisonment and caning, or jail for up to 20 years, a fine, or caning. — TODAY