Headless body case: Couple kept to themselves

The couple kept to themselves and were well mannered, save for an argument or two.

That was how neighbours described Madam Jasvinder Kaur and her husband, Mr Harvinder Singh, both 33.

Madam Kaur's headless body was found in Whampoa River last Thursday.

Indian national Gursharan Singh, 25, who is believed to be the husband's friend, was arrested on Wednesday and was charged with her murder last Friday.

The police are now looking for the husband, who left the country through Woodlands checkpoint half an hour before his wife's body was found.

According to court documents, the murder happened between 10pm on Dec 10 and 7.33am on Dec 12 at 228A, Balestier Road, a three-storey shophouse. There are 14 rooms in the shophouse, each about half the size of an HDB room.

Neighbours said the couple, who moved in barely two weeks before the murder, were the only Indian nationals living there.

No interaction

Mr Frankie Chai, 24, who has been living there for a year, said he had seen the couple but never interacted with them.

The cook described Madam Kaur as slim and fair, while her husband has a big build.

The Chinese national said in Mandarin: "They didn't seem to be on good terms. I saw them cooking their own food separately in the shared kitchen."

Mr Chai said he had heard the couple quarrelling on another night.

"I can't remember when exactly, but they were screaming and shouting in a foreign language for about 10 minutes," he said.

"I didn't check what was happening."

Another neighbour who wanted to be known only as Mr Zhang said the Indian couple kept to themselves.

The 27-year-old, who works in the retail industry, said he had seen Madam Kaur make breakfast for her husband at 6am, and did not suspect any problems in their marriage.

None of the occupants knew about Madam Kaur's death until they read about it in the newspapers.

Mr Zhang, who was shocked when he found out, said: "On Wednesday, the police were here to investigate. They brought an Indian man to the couple's room that night."

Another Chinese national in his 20s, who declined to be named, said: "Even though there are only so many of us living on the same floor, we rarely see each other due to our different schedules.

"Some of us have to work at night, and in the day we are catching up on our sleep."

Singh has been remanded at the Central Police Division and will be back in court on Dec 27. If convicted of murder, he will face the death penalty.

Retracing his steps

Last Friday, the police retraced the route that Gursharan Singh, 25, allegedly took to dispose of Madam Kaur's body.

The forklift driver was charged in court last Friday with murdering Madam Kaur, together with one unknown male person.

The retracing, which the police did with Singh, was done in three parts.

It started from the three-storey shophouse at 228A, Balestier Road, where Madam Kaur lived.

He then led the police to the overhead bridge next to Hong Wen School.

The New Paper understands that Singh allegedly used the overhead bridge to get to the Whampoa River, where Madam Kaur's decapitated body was found last Thursday.

His head hung low as he walked from one location to another.

When questioned by the Criminal Investigation Department officer about the case, the Indian national seemed to be calm, replying in short sentences.

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