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Crown seeks 12-year prison term in ‘brutal’ stabbing that killed Surrey woman

Click to play video: 'Surrey man faces sentencing after pleading guilty to manslaughter'
Surrey man faces sentencing after pleading guilty to manslaughter
WATCH: A Surrey man faces a sentencing hearing after pleading guilty to manslaughter and aggravated assault in a 2020 killing at a Surrey townhouse. Emily Lazatin reports.

Crown prosecutors argued a man who fatally stabbed a “defenceless” woman in a “brutal” attack in Surrey four years ago should spend 12 years in prison.

Harpreet Singh pleaded guilty in September to one count of manslaughter and two counts of aggravated assault in the attack that left his sister-in-law Baljit Kaur dead.

Singh, who holds dual Australian-Indian citizenship, was initially charged with second-degree murder.

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Calls for Canadian Criminal Code to define femicide

Police were called to an incident of domestic violence in a townhouse complex near 66 Avenue and 127 Street in October 2020, where Kaur was found with stab wounds that ultimately proved fatal.

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The court heard Thursday that another man and a two-year-old child also suffered serious stab wounds.

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Kaur, the court heard, was stabbed repeatedly and suffered wounds to her head and torso.

“Baljit was defenceless, she didn’t have a weapon and even made more defenceless because she was holding a child,” prosecutors told the court.

“Singh’s actions were swift, it was brutal and aimed to cause significant injury.”

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Women’s rights advocates call on politicians to prioritize issue of violence against women

Singh’s defence argued he should spend eight years behind bars, and said he was animated by “high passion” and “anger” at the time, and could not remember what he did over the course of the attack.

Kaur’s family travelled to India for the hearing, and declined to comment.

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The judge is expected to deliver their sentence on Oct. 9. After Singh serves his time, he is expected to be deported to Australia.

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