Greenridge Crescent twin deaths: Dad to plead guilty to culpable homicide not amounting to murder
Pre-trial conference has been scheduled for 26 May at High Court, following report by Institute of Mental Health
SINGAPORE — The father who allegedly strangled his twin 11-year-old sons in an Upper Bukit Timah canal in 2022 is set to plead guilty to culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
The pre-trial conference of Xavier Yap Jung Houn, 49, has been scheduled for 26 May at the High Court, according to The Straits Times.
Yap appeared in court via video-link on Tuesday (18 April), after he was initially charged with murder of Aston Yap Kai Shern and Ethan Yap E Chern in a covered canal at a playground in Greenridge Crescent on 21 January last year.
Father was found to have major depressive disorder of moderate severity
The Straits Times reported that Yap's murder charges were reduced to culpable homicide not amounting to murder in February, after the prosecution amended the charges following the release of a report by the Institute of Mental Health.
The report found Yap to have major depressive disorder of moderate severity.
The Straits Times said that Yap is represented by Patrick Nai, Choo Si Sen and Choo Yean Lin from Tan Lee & Partners, and Muhammad Razeen Sayed Majunoon from Advance Law.
Background of the twin deaths
On 21 January 2022, the police received a call for help from Yap while he was at the playground.
Upon arrival, they found his sons lying motionless in the canal. The kids were pronounced dead at the scene by a paramedic. It has been reported that both twins had special needs.
Those convicted of committing culpable homicide not amounting to murder can either be jailed for life and caned, or jailed for up to 20 years and fined or caned.
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