Indian-origin Jagpreet Singh convicted of murdering wife in Canada; claimed he accidentally ‘poked’ her with a knife
An Indian-origin man has been convicted of second-degree murder for fatally stabbing his wife just six days after arriving in Canada, with a judge rejecting his claim that he had only accidentally “poked” her during a struggle.53-year-old Jagpreet Singh was found guilty over the killing of his wife, 41-year-old Balwinder Kaur, at her basement apartment in Abbotsford, British Columbia. The couple had been married for about 20 years and shared two children. They had reunited only for days after Singh travelled from India on a visitor visa.Singh arrived in Canada on 9 March 2024 after Kaur sponsored his visa application. She had moved to Canada earlier to care for their daughter, who had travelled there in 2021 for her studies and later developed serious medical problems. The reunion ended in tragedy on 15 March 2024.Police were called to the couple’s home on Wagner Drive after reports of a stabbing. Officers found Kaur unconscious in a pool of blood inside the basement suite. She was taken to hospital but was pronounced dead after midnight. Kaur suffered multiple stab wounds. She had four wounds to her neck and four near her chest. A broken steak knife was recovered at the scene, with its handle lying close to her body.When officers entered the home, Singh was found sitting on a couch in the basement. Constable Nicholas Howden testified that Singh was sitting on the ground and “simply staring at us.” Police also said he appeared “scared, in shock” and struggled to understand officers, possibly because he did not speak English.During the trial, Singh admitted causing the fatal injuries but denied committing murder. His defence argued that Kaur’s death occurred “in the heat of passion caused by sudden provocation”. Singh claimed his wife had first swung a knife at him and that he was only trying to disarm her.He also told the court that he had accidentally “poked” her in the stomach with the knife and later could not clearly remember what happened. The judge rejected that version of events.British Columbia Supreme Court Justice Andrea Ormiston described Singh’s testimony as “untrustworthy and unreliable.”“I have found Mr. Singh’s evidence about what transpired between him and Ms. Kaur in the time leading up to her death to be entirely unreliable, particularly on critical points such as the nature of the conflict between them before Ms. Kaur was stabbed, and Mr. Singh’s ensuing memory loss,” the judge wrote.Evidence presented during the trial showed there had been little to no communication between the couple in the weeks before Singh travelled to Canada. Phone records revealed no calls or text messages between January and early March 2024. On 26 February, a WhatsApp system message on Kaur’s phone stated, “You unblocked this contact.”Kaur met Singh at the airport on 9 March 2024 and shared photos and videos of their reunion. Several calls between the couple were recorded over the following days.On the night of the attack, Kaur made a WhatsApp video call at 9.37 pm to a number linked to her son. That number called her back four times, but none of the calls were answered. Kaur had told friends she was afraid of her husband and did not want him to come to Canada. Singh was formally charged with second-degree murder after the incident and pleaded not guilty in July 2024.He is expected to be sentenced after psychological assessments are completed, with sentencing scheduled for after October this year.
