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A 50-year-old Singaporean man has admitted to the manslaughter of his 51-year-old wife in an apartment hotel in Newcastle, where they were on holiday.

Plead guilty to manslaughter

Fong Soong Hert appeared in Newcastle Crown Court on Mar. 18, where he pleaded guilty to manslaughter, according to BBC.

He denied one charge of murdering his wife, Pek Ying Ling, in County Aparthotel at Westgate Road, Newcastle.

Fong is currently on remand and attended court via video link.

He is scheduled to go on trial on June 6.

Those convicted of murder in Britain face life imprisonment.

Background

The Northumbria police received a call for assistance at around 7:15am (3:15pm Singapore time) on Dec. 6.

When they arrived at County Aparthotel in Westgate Road, they found Pek, who was not breathing.

According to the Northumbria Police Facebook post, emergency service personnel fought to resuscitate Pek, but failed, and she was declared dead at the scene.

Fong was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder, based on a previous Mothership report, and was charged with the murder of Pek.

Loving couple married for 27 years

The couple were married for 27 years and had three sons.

They left Singapore on Oct. 24, 2021, for a 2.5-month holiday, according to the Straits Times (ST).

The pair visited Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Croatia and Scotland and were midway through their vacation before Pek's death at Newcastle.

Three days before the incident, on Dec. 3, 2021, the couple had met their eldest son in Newcastle.

They had planned to meet their other two sons later on in the trip for a family holiday.

The pair were in the events industry, where Fong runs an events consultancy firm, while Pek left her full-time role during the pandemic in 2020.

Family members who spoke to ST said the couple was very loving.

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Top image from Northumbria Police/Facebook and from Google Maps