SINGAPORE — A teenager who was sentenced to 16 years in jail for killing his schoolmate with an axe at River Valley High School turned to the Court of Appeal on Monday to seek a shorter prison term.Bouquets of flowers placed at the main gate of River Valley High School on July 25, 2021.SINGAPORE — A teenager who was sentenced to 16 years in jail for killing his schoolmate with an axe at River Valley High School turned to the Court of Appeal on Monday to seek a shorter prison term.
His lawyers, Mr Sunil Sudheesan and Ms Joyce Khoo from Quahe Woo & Palmer, argued for his jail term of 16 years to be reduced to eight to 10 years instead. Chief Justice Menon told Mr Sudheesan that he was"struggling" with the lawyer's case, as the narrative of what happened, according to the statement of facts the teen pleaded guilty to, did not quite fit.
"On the contrary, it presents a picture of someone who was thinking about how to complete the act of killing, and it seems very much targeted at his plan towards taking the life of the victim, rather than anything to do putting himself in the way of law enforcement."According to court documents, the teenager claimed he felt"catharsis and regret" after attacking the victim, and he decided to stop his plan of killing more people.