Court grapples with case of mentally unsound man, 90, who killed his wife in 'overwhelmingly lethal' attack

The 74-year-old woman was found lying in a pool of blood by her grandson while her husband stood nearby mumbling to himself.

SINGAPORE: A court on Monday (Aug 3) grappled with a case of an 88-year-old man who killed his 74-year-old wife in an "overwhelmingly lethal" attack, leaving extensive injuries on her body.

The woman was found by her grandson with a gaping wound from her jaw to her chest, 34 injuries from a sharp object, and a fractured skull, neck, spine and ribs.

Her husband Ridawi Morsudin, now 90, was of unsound mind at the time of the offence in June 2024, due to his dementia and delirium.

He is still of unsound mind and is unfit to plead in a court of law, or to put in his defence. He is now bed-bound and his health conditions have worsened, the court heard.

This is believed to be the first case of its kind to be dealt with since amendments to the law relating to criminals with unsound mind, known as the unsoundness of mind regime, came into effect in February 2025.

WHAT HAPPENED

Ridawi lived with his wife and grandson in a flat. From 2022, his mental faculties began deteriorating and he stopped recognising his family members.

He also became more hot-tempered and aggressive and would wander out of the flat and get lost.

Over a year from January 2023, the police attended to Ridawi 10 times because he was lost and disoriented.

Between late January 2024 and early February 2024, Ridawi was admitted to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital as he was found wandering confused at a void deck.

He was in delirium and was diagnosed with mixed dementia. The hospital applied for Ridawi to be enrolled at St Luke's Eldercare, a daycare centre for senior citizens with dementia.

He was enrolled at the centre for about a month from March 2024 but he was discharged on Apr 30, 2024 as he was increasingly uncooperative with the staff members, among other things.

After Ridawi returned to his flat, his children set up a roster to deliver meals to him and his wife.

A closed-circuit television camera providing a live feed of the living room was set up, but it did not store any footage.

THE DEATH OF THE VICTIM

The victim was last seen alive by a relative who delivered food to the flat on the night of Jun 4, 2024.

She saw Ridawi sleeping on a recliner and the victim sitting on a sofa and left the flat at about 7pm.

Sometime past midnight on Jun 5, 2024, Ridawi's 26-year-old grandson saw from the live CCTV footage that his grandmother was motionless on the floor in a pool of blood.

He also saw his grandfather standing behind his recliner, looking in the direction of the victim.

Ridawi's grandson rushed back to the flat and called for help. He saw his grandfather mumbling to himself near his recliner.

When he asked his grandfather what happened, Ridawi replied in Malay that "that person no longer alive" and "it's too late".

Paramedics and the police arrived shortly after and the victim was pronounced dead.

INJURIES ON VICTIM

She had a large gaping injury from her jaw across her neck to her chest and multiple injuries on her head and face from a sharp object.

An autopsy uncovered at least 34 distinct lacerations, incised, stab or sharp force injuries on her body.

Her skull was extensively fractured and she sustained fractures in her neck and spine.

She died of sharp force injuries to her head, neck and chest, and although she had heart disease, this did not contribute to her death, given the "overwhelming lethality of the sharp force injuries present".

The victim's blood and DNA were found on the handles and blades on a pair of blood-stained scissors that had been found on top of two bloodied pillows on a table in the living room.

Her blood and DNA was also found on a second pair of bloodied scissors on the floor.

The victim's blood and DNA was also found on swabs taken from Ridawi's fingernails, nose, foot, forearm and knee.

There were hundreds of spatter stains on his shirt. Their location suggests that they likely resulted from the motion of bloodied objects being swung, the court heard.

Ridawi's walking aid was also found to carry his wife's blood and DNA.

A bloodstain pattern analysis later conducted suggested there was activity supporting an attack on the victim while she was on the sofa and near the south wall of the living room.

RIDAWI INCOHERENT

The police tried to interview Ridawi at the scene, but he was incoherent.

He was examined at Police Cantonment Complex and noted to be alert and jovial, but he was disoriented and unable to provide a history of the incident or his own medical history.

He was charged in court and remanded for a forensic psychiatric evaluation.

He was found to have major neurocognitive disorder due to Alzheimer's disease and vascular disease, with behavioural disturbance.

He was also possibly delirious at the time of the offence and was unfit to plead. He is also of unsound mind and incapable of making his defence.

Ridawi's fitness to plead is unlikely to be restored, due to the nature of major neurocognitive disorders, the court heard.

A psychiatrist who examined him explained that Ridawi's attack on his wife was within the range of symptoms associated with delirium, although it was uncommon.

She said Ridawi was more susceptible to developing delirium because of his pre-existing major neurocognitive disorder, and it was likely that his delirium distorted his sense of reality.

SUBMISSIONS ON NOTIONAL IMPRISONMENT

Deputy Public Prosecutors Goh Yong Ngee and Thaddeus Tan said Ridawi had fatally attacked his wife so ferociously that he left a gaping wound on her body.

However, after he was charged, he was found to be unfit to plead and the proceedings were stayed. The case was later transmitted to High Court.

As reports from the Institute of Mental Health state that Ridawi is incapable of making his defence, the statutory regime under Sections 247 to 249 of the Criminal Procedure Code applies.

Under this regime, the court must determine if Ridawi is indeed incapable of making his defence.

If so, the court must report the case to the relevant minister and specify the notional imprisonment period that Ridawi would have been required to undergo, if he had been convicted of the offence.

A notional imprisonment period is the total jail term that the court would have required the accused to undergo, had he been convicted of and sentenced to jail for every offence he was charged with.

The minister may then make the appropriate order.

The prosecutors said a notional imprisonment period of five years is appropriate.

In determining the notional imprisonment period, the court should first assume that Ridawi has committed and is convicted of every offence with which he is charged, said the prosecutors.

The prosecution does not need to establish the physical elements of the offence beyond a reasonable doubt and it is enough for them to provide a statement of facts setting out the key elements of the factual case, thereby satisfying the physical elements.

Second, the court should determine the notional imprisonment period first without considering Ridawi's mental condition. After going through other legal issues of sentencing, the court should consider if adjustments should be made to the notional imprisonment period due to Ridawi's mental condition at the time of the offence.

After receiving the court's report, the minister will decide whether to order Ridawi's confinement, or order a conditional release.

The court must give effect to the minister's order.

Mr Goh said the victim was killed sometime in a six-hour window from 7pm on Jun 4, 2024, when she was last seen alive.

During this window, only Ridawi and his wife were in the flat, and nobody else could have gained entry because of the locks on the door.

Since Ridawi was the only person in the flat in that time, he was the one who inflicted the injuries on his wife, said the prosecutors.

Mr Goh said the "overwhelming lethality" of the injuries was consistent with the psychiatrist's opinion that Ridawi likely had delirium at the time.

The prosecution said it was mindful of Ridawi's age and how his health has significantly deteriorated since the incident.

He is completely dependent for all activities of daily living and is bedbound.

While the heinous manner in which he killed his wife ought to "shock the conscience of the court", he was suffering from a mental condition that altered his sense of reality, said Mr Goh.

He is at low risk of reoffending and is dependent on others for his needs, so the prosecution urged the court to specify a notional imprisonment period of five years in its report to the minister.

Justice Hoo Sheau Peng questioned why it was assessed that Ridawi is physically unable to carry out such acts in the future, since he was able to inflict fairly serious wounds just two years ago.

She also said this was probably the first case under the regime, in response to the prosecution saying this was the first case where the High Court was addressing the case at the first instance.

Ridawi was represented by Mr Muhammad Taufiq Suraidi from the Public Defender's Office.

He sought a notional imprisonment period of two to three years instead, saying his client was unlikely to be able to assault anyone independently due to the deterioration of his health.

Ridawi is currently being held by the prisons in Changi Medical Complex.

Mr Taufiq said Ridawi required assistance to be carried from his bed to a wheelchair when he saw him in the prison and he had not seen Ridawi walk around.

However, he acknowledged that Ridawi was already using a walking aid when he committed the offence and was able to do "a rather brutal act" against his wife.

The delirium may have given him "unnatural strength" to commit the offence, said the lawyer.

He added that it was "quite a remote possibility" that Ridawi would reoffend, given his state.

Mr Taufiq said two to three years would give a runway for the minister and IMH to make arrangements, so that Ridawi can pass away in the care of his family when he is released.

He said five years was "too long" as he could die during the time of his detention and it would be tantamount to life imprisonment.

Justice Hoo adjourned the case to Aug 13 to make her decision.

Had Ridawi been of sound mind and convicted of the offence of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, he could have been jailed for life, or for up to 20 years and fined.

He cannot be caned due to his age.