21-year-old Indian origin student killed by ex-boyfriend in Australia in act of revenge

A 21-year-old Indian-origin student was bound with cable wires and buried alive by her ex-boyfriend in “an act of vengeance”, a court in Southern Australia heard on Thursday.

Jasmeen Kaur, the 21-year-old nursing student, was kidnapped from her workplace in Adelaide and was killed by Tarikjot Singh in March 2021. She was murdered one month after reporting Singh to the police for stalking.

9news reported that Singh buried her alive in a shallow grave more than 400 kilometres from her workplace.

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Singh initially denied committing the crime, alleging that Kaur had killed herself and that he had buried her body.

However, later he pleaded guilty after incriminating pieces of evidence were found. He was due to stand trial earlier this year.

Officials had found a CCTV footage which caught him hours before the murder in Mile End buying gloves, cable ties and a shovel.

How did the murder take place?

According to police, Singh had made “superficial” cuts to Jasmeen’s throat and buried her in a shallow grave.

Kaur was not dead at the time when she was buried on March 6 and was aware of her surroundings as the injuries to her neck were not enough to kill her.

The enforcement authorities found her blindfolded, limbs bound with cable ties and gaffer tape in a shallow grave in the Flinders Ranges.

'Uncommon level of cruelty'

On Thursday, prosecutors argued that the murder was an act of revenge and the nature and level of violence involved an "uncommon level of cruelty".

"She had to have been consciously suffering what could only be described as the absolute terror of breathing in and swallowing soil and dying in that way," prosecutor Carmen Matteo said, according to 9news.

The woman’s family, including her mother, were in court when the submissions for his sentencing were made.

Unable to get over breakup

During the hearing, the court was told that Singh wanted to kill Kaur because was unable to get over the breakdown of their relationship.

“It’s not known when her throat was cut, it’s not known when or how she got into or was placed into that burial grave and it’s not known when that was dug, other than the prosecution says it had to have been while she was still alive and in preparation for her burial.

“[It was] a killing that was committed as an act of vengeance or as an act of revenge,” Matteo was quoted as saying.

Singh was told in court that he will be jailed for life with a non-parole period that the court will impose starting next month.

(With inputs from agencies)

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