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Man jailed 10 years for killing fiancee, thinking she was the ‘devil’

SINGAPORE — Convinced that his girlfriend was possessed, Gabriel Lee Haw Ling took her to church for an exorcism rite and made her carry a Bible to work.

Lee Haw Ling Gabriel referred to Elsie Lie Lek Chee(the victim) as ‘Elsie Lucifer’ to a psychiatrist, who diagnosed him with psychosis, causing him delusions, mood swings and disorganised behaviour. Photo: Singapore Police Force

Lee Haw Ling Gabriel referred to Elsie Lie Lek Chee(the victim) as ‘Elsie Lucifer’ to a psychiatrist, who diagnosed him with psychosis, causing him delusions, mood swings and disorganised behaviour. Photo: Singapore Police Force

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SINGAPORE — Convinced that his girlfriend was possessed, Gabriel Lee Haw Ling took her to church for an exorcism rite and made her carry a Bible to work.

Despite all this, Elsie Lie Lek Chee, 24, was so in love that she believed his delusions and told her colleague that she was possessed. She even got engaged to Lee during a holiday to Genting Highlands in March 2012.

Days later, she died at his hands in the bedroom they shared. Her eyeballs and clumps of her hair were found at the foot of their Jurong West block.

But Lie had suffered much worse: Among the more than 40 wounds all over her half-dressed body, she had a gaping wound measuring 13cm at its widest from a failed decapitation. Her right ankle joint also had a 13cm by 8cm wound from an unsuccessful amputation. Strewn around her were an arsenal of tools — a broken hammer, a can opener, a pair of pruning shears and two pairs of scissors. A few bent metal spoons and a fork were entangled in her hair.

These gory details of the shocking killing emerged for the first time as a High Court sentenced Lee, now 42, to 10 years’ jail after he admitted to culpable homicide, saying: “I plead guilty, I’m very sorry”.

After the hearing, Lie’s mother broke down in front of the media. “Why doesn’t he have to pay with his life? My daughter died so terribly,” said Madam Chen Yoke Mooi, 54.

Lee and Lie got to know each other on a social networking site around April 2011, when he was undergoing divorce proceedings.

Her mother did not approve of the relationship and she did not introduce him to her parents, said her brother Mr Jinn Chyau, 26, on Thursday.

Three months later, the couple moved into a rental apartment, which Lee believed was haunted. He also thought that Lie was possessed by spirits, and took her for an exorcism — which the priest refused to perform.

The court heard that on March 30, 2012, the couple’s flatmate called in the police after hearing loud groaning noises from their room.

Officers who attended to the case some time after 11pm found the bedroom strewn with clothes and Ms Lie seemed physically weak, but she explained it was due to a recent abortion. After they left, the couple’s fellow tenants continued to hear loud noises through the night.

The next morning, at around 6.30am, another flatmate noticed blood on the couple’s bedroom door and called the police again.

A paramedic arrived first and was greeted by a grisly sight: Lee, lying naked on a mattress, with his half-dressed fiancee Lie atop, covered in blood. Lee stared blankly at the paramedic and gouged out Lie’s eyeballs, then flung them out of the window.

Minutes later, the police came and saw Lee kneeling beside the body, groaning and chanting with a yellow object in his hands that resembled a cross. 

After he was arrested, Lee referred to Lie as “Elsie Lucifer” to a psychiatrist, who diagnosed him with psychosis. The condition caused him to suffer from delusions, mood swings and disorganised behaviour. 

On Thursday (Feb 23), Deputy Public Prosecutor Hay Hung Chun called for a 12-year jail term. 

“The violence inflicted on the deceased was appalling to say the least. (He) had attempted to behead her and amputate her right foot. He gouged out both her eyes. He had left her no dignity in death.”

But defence lawyer Sunil Sudheesan pleaded for nine to 10 years’ jail, citing his client’s mental condition. 

“It is trite law that our courts do not make examples of mentally disordered accused persons who commit offences as a result of their psychiatric conditions,” he said.

Mr Sudheesan pointed out that Lee had not shown any psychotic symptoms since December 2014, and continues to take a low dose of medication as a preventive measure.

He added: “He has insight, he has family support ... and he is truly sorry. I cannot emphasise how sorry he is — he ultimately killed a lady he loved. This is a heartbroken man who deserves one chance.”

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