Sengkang flat deaths: Woman reportedly a Cambridge PhD graduate

The woman found dead in a Sengkang HDB unit on Monday (Oct 6) reportedly held degrees from the National University of Singapore (NUS) and the University of Cambridge.

The 47-year-old woman, Xu Na, had been found dead along with her father in their home at Block 324D Sengkang East Way at around 1.35pm, according to the police.

Speaking to Shin Min Daily News, Xu Rong (transliteration), Xu Na's classmate from NUS, said that he immediately recognised Xu Na upon seeing the photo released by the police in their appeal for her next-of-kin.

He subsequently contacted his classmates and confirmed her identity, and they all expressed sorrow over her passing.

According to Xu Rong, he and Xu Na were undergraduate students at the same time and studied Computer Science at NUS. He also described her as introverted, polite and kind.

"At first, we weren't very close. Then she joined the Chinese Language Society at NUS, so I got to know her better. She also likes sports, and I used to play table tennis with her," he told Shin Min.

Cambridge PhD graduate

Xu Rong said that the last time he had seen Xu Na was around 20 years ago when they crossed paths on the North East Line.

At the time, Xu Na told him that she had been doing research in France and had completed her studies at the University of Cambridge.

According to the Xu Na's blog, she graduated from the Department of Computer Science at the National University of Singapore in 2001, obtained a master's degree from the NUS in 2003, and a doctorate from the University of Cambridge in the UK in 2008.

Xu Na also completed her pre-university studies at Anglo-Chinese Junior College in 1997, according to Shin Min, who found that she was an active member of the Chinese Language Society and Table Tennis Club.

Separately, the police had earlier made an appeal for the next of kin of Xu Na to come forward. Anyone with information can call the police at 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at police.gov.sg/i-witness.

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dana.leong@asiaone.com