Friday, March 29, 2024
ADVT 
International

Indian-origin woman jailed for killing stepdaughter

Darpan News Desk IANS, 04 Jun, 2019 06:58 PM

    An Indian-origin woman has been sentenced to 22 years to life in prison for strangling her 9-year-old stepdaughter in a bathtub in 2016, a crime described by a US court as a "disturbing" example of "extreme violence".

    Shamdai Arjun, 55, of Queens, New York, was sentenced on Monday after being convicted in May of second-degree murder for killing Ashdeep Kaur. She will spend 22 years to up to life behind bars for the August 2016 killing.

    Queens Supreme Court Justice Kenneth Holder handed down the sentence in a case he described as a "disturbing" example of "extreme violence" and suffering, Queens Daily Eagle reported.

    Ashdeep Kaur had moved from India to be in the care of her father Sukhjinder Singh and his wife in 2016. Family members said the girl told them about past abuse at the hands of her stepmother.

    "It's disturbing to consider how you placed your hands around the neck and throat of that child and squeezed without letting up until her body went limp," Justice Holder said at sentencing.

    "The suffering this child endured as she was being killed is unimaginable, and to boot you were the last face she had to look up and see before she died."

    Acting Queens District Attorney John Ryan said: "The defendant in this case goes beyond the tales of evil stepmothers. This defendant committed the unimaginable - she wrapped her hands around her stepdaughter's little neck and squeezed the life out of her.

    "The victim was an innocent child and just nine years old. The court has imposed a sentence that will likely guarantee this woman never sees freedom again. The sentence of the Court is more than warranted in this tragic case," Ryan said.

    According to trial testimony, Arjun left her home in the Richmond Hill section of Queens on August 19, 2016 around 5.30 p.m. with her former husband and two grandchildren, ages 3 and 5.

    Asked about the 9-year-old victim's whereabouts, she told an eyewitness that the child was in the bathroom and was waiting for her father to pick her up.

    The eyewitness, who observed that the bathroom light had been on for several hours, called the victim's father Sukhjinder Singh and was instructed to break through the bathroom door. Ashdeep Kaur's lifeless and bruised naked body was later found in the bathtub.

    The medical examiner's office determined that the cause of death was strangulation.

     

    MORE International ARTICLES

    Trump, May hail great US-UK ties amid protests

    The press conference followed talks between Trump and May at 10 Downing Street. May said they had a "great relationship" that they should "build on", the BBC reported.

    Trump, May hail great US-UK ties amid protests

    NY could become first state to ban cat declawing

    Declawing a cat is already illegal in much of Europe as well as in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Denver.

    NY could become first state to ban cat declawing

    Deaths from falls among older Americans are on the rise

    The findings highlight the importance of fall prevention.

    Deaths from falls among older Americans are on the rise

    Trump slams London Mayor as he arrives in UK

    Trump slams London Mayor as he arrives in UK
    After Air Force One touched down at the Stansted Airport, the President and his wife, First Lady Melania, were greeted by Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, the Guardian reported.

    Trump slams London Mayor as he arrives in UK

    5 killed in Kabul blast targeting government bus

    5 killed in Kabul blast targeting government bus
    The explosion occurred at 1.30 p.m. on Darul Aman road near the American University of Afghanistan, reports Tolo News.

    5 killed in Kabul blast targeting government bus

    Kerala businessman Yusuf Ali gets first Gold residence card in UAE

    The first beneficiaries are investors with total investments exceeding Dh100 billion

    Kerala businessman Yusuf Ali gets first Gold residence card in UAE

    PrevNext