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Foreign worker loses appeal against life sentence for murder

SINGAPORE — A Bangladeshi construction worker, who was convicted of murder, had escaped the hangman’s noose — but he still wanted to appeal against the sentence, which will see him being locked away behind bars for life.

SINGAPORE — A Bangladeshi construction worker, who was convicted of murder, had escaped the hangman’s noose — but he still wanted to appeal against the sentence, which will see him being locked away behind bars for life.

In making his appeal yesterday, Kamrul Hasan Abdul Quddus, 40, who was unrepresented, told the Court of Appeal — Singapore’s final appeal court — that his family misses him.

However, the court, led by Judge of Appeal Andrew Phang, dismissed Kamrul’s appeal, saying that his 
sentence could not be reduced as it was the “minimum” punishment for his charge.

Kamrul was convicted in 2010 of murdering his 25-year-old Indonesian girlfriend, Yulia Afriyanti, who worked here as a maid.

Yulia’s naked body was found in December 2007 in a cardboard box in a unit of the Viz@Holland condominium, which was then 
under construction.

Last year, Kamrul was sentenced to life imprisonment and also ordered to receive 10 strokes of the cane.

Kamrul is the fourth convicted murderer to be given a life sentence, instead of the death penalty.

This follows changes to the law, which took effect last year, giving judges the discretion to impose either the death penalty or a life sentence for certain categories of murder.

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