Man, 90, who allegedly brutally attacked & killed wife in Bukit Panjang in 2024, found mentally unsound & unfit to stand trial

A 90-year-old man, who allegedly murdered his wife in their Bukit Panjang flat in 2024, was found by the High Court today (Aug. 3) to be of unsound mind.

Ridawi Morsudin was 88 when he allegedly fatally attacked his wife while the pair were alone at home in a murder the prosecution described as being "overwhelming lethal", according to court documents seen by Mothership.

The ferocity of the attack left a gaping wound extending from the left side of the victim's jaw to the left side of her chest, leaving her fractured jaw, clavicle, ribs, and lungs exposed.

Ridawi was found to be in a delirium at the time of the murder due to his unsound mind and dementia, said medical practitioners from the Institute of Mental Health (IMH).

On this basis, the court also found him incapable of making his defence and unfit to plead or stand trial due to his mental state.

The case is the first of its kind in Singapore.

Under the new regime that came into effect in February 2025, the court must determine if the accused is indeed incapable of making his defence.

If so, the court must report the case to the Minister of Law and specify the notional imprisonment period that the accused would have been required to undergo, if he was convicted of the offence.

An appropriate order would then be taken by the minister.

Background

Ridawi lived with his wife, 74-year-old Aminah Abdul, and their 26-year-old grandson in their flat at Block 137 Petir Road in Bukit Panjang.

Sometime in 2022, Ridawi's mental state began deteriorating and he started losing the ability to recognise his family members.

He also became more hot-tempered and aggressive, and would wander out of his home and lose his way.

On 10 separate occasions from January 2023 to January 2024, he was attended to by the police after becoming lost and disoriented.

At one point, he was also admitted to the hospital after being found in a delirium and was diagnosed with mixed dementia.

The hospital enrolled Ridawi into St Luke's Eldercare.

While waiting for the enrolment, a healthcare assistant was assigned to care for him at his flat.

Ridawi's family members also locked the metal gate of his flat when the healthcare assistant was not on duty to prevent him from wandering out of the flat.

He was enrolled into the eldercare facility for about a month from March 2024, but was discharged by the end of April 2024 as he was, amongst others, increasingly uncooperative with the staff.

A roster was then set up by Ridawi's children to deliver meals to him and his wife.

A surveillance camera was also installed to provide a live feed of the living room.

Day of the murder

On Jun. 4, 2024 at about 6:40pm, a relative delivered food to Ridawi and his wife, who were the only people in the flat at the time.

The relative left at about 7pm.

She would be the last person to see the victim alive.

Just past midnight on Jun. 5, 2024, the couple's grandson saw through the CCTV camera that the victim was lying motionless on the floor in a pool of blood, with Ridawi standing behind his recliner chair looking in her direction.

The grandson rushed back to the flat and called for an ambulance.

When he arrived, he saw his grandmother lying on the ground topless with her sarong down to her knees.

Ridawi was mumbling to himself. When asked what had happened, he said in Malay: "That person is no longer alive. It's too late."

After the police and paramedics arrived at the flat, the victim was pronounced dead at about 1:39am.

Two pairs of bloodstained scissors with the deceased's blood and DNA were found at the scene.

The same was found on the sponge handle, shaft, base and interior of the four legs of Ridawi's walking aid.

Bloodstain patterns indicated that the attack occurred when the victim was on the sofa and near the wall of the living room.

An autopsy conducted later found a large injury extending from the left side of her jaw, across the left side of her neck to the left side of her chest exposing her jawbone, collarbone, ribs and a lung.

There were at least 34 lacerations across the body, including stab injuries and sharp force injuries.

The certified cause of death was sharp force injuries to the head, neck and chest.

No alcohol or drugs were found in the victim's blood and urine.

Accused incoherent, disoriented

Ridawi appeared incoherent when interviewed by the police at the scene.

When examined by a psychiatrist later, he was noted to be alert and jovial, but not oriented to time, place or person.

He was also unable to provide an account of the incident or his personal medical history.

He was charged in court on Jun. 5, 2024 for culpable homicide not amounting to murder and remanded in Changi Prison for a psychiatric evaluation until Jul. 2, 2024.

It was found that Ridawi had major neurocognitive disorder due to Alzheimer's disease and vascular disease, with behavioural disturbance.

His attack "is within the range of symptoms associated with delirium, albeit uncommon," a psychiatrist said.

From the time he was arrested, he exhibited changes in behaviour ranging from being in a daze, walking aimlessly with poor appetite to verbal aggression, sleep-wake reversal and non-compliance to medications.

Psychiatrists found him to be of unsound mind, unfit to plead and incapable of making his defence.

The case was later transmitted to the High Court.

Prosecution sought five years' jail

In court on Aug. 3, the deputy public prosecutors said a notional imprisonment period of five years is appropriate.

The court should proceed on the assumption that the accused committed and has been convicted of the offences for which was charged, they said.

In this case, the physical elements of the offences were made out, confirming Ridawi was the only person who could have inflicted the injuries on the victim as only the pair was at home at the time.

However, Ridawi's lawyer said his client may die within that period, which would amount to life imprisonment.

He sought two to three years instead.

He added that while Ridawi was already frail at the time, his delirium may have given him "unnatural strength" to commit the crime.

However, it is unlikely for him to reoffend given his physical state, he added.

Ridawi is currently held at Changi Medical Complex.

He is now bed-bound and needs to be carried from his bed to a wheelchair.

The case has been adjourned to Aug. 13 for the judge to make her decision.