There were no public interest grounds to issue a correction direction under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) over a report by Israeli media outlet Haaretz, said Minister for Home Affairs and Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security K Shanmugam.

The media outlet alleged that a delegation from Israel had discussed the death penalty with Singaporean officials.

In a written reply on Oct. 7, 2026, SM Shanmugam said the assessment at the time, based on legal advice, was that the public interest grounds for issuing a POFMA Direction were not met.

His reply came after Workers’ Party Member of Parliament Fadli Fawzi asked about the reported meeting, including why a correction direction was not issued against Haaretz.

Fadli also asked if illegal settlements and settler violence in the West Bank were discussed during the meeting, and if Singapore had requested that the meeting be kept secret.

What was alleged in the article

On Sep. 7, 2026, Haaretz reported that a delegation comprising representatives from the Israel Prison Service and the National Security Ministry had made what it described as a "secret visit" to Singapore.

According to CNA, the report claimed that the death penalty was discussed during the visit, citing several unnamed sources.

This claim was subsequently refuted by Singapore's Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Sep. 11, 2026.

An MHA spokesperson told CNA that Haaretz correspondent Josh Breiner had asked whether discussions on the death penalty had taken place.

Breiner was informed that no such discussions had taken place and that it would be false to suggest otherwise, the spokesperson said.

MHA added that it had hosted the Israeli delegation for an officials-level meeting, during which both sides shared best practices in areas such as emergency response, crime prevention, and forensics.

Such engagements allow the exchange of information and operational cooperation in areas like fire and rescue and cybercrime.

"This is part of the Singapore government’s engagement with a wide range of international counterparts in the conduct of foreign relations, economic cooperation, security dialogue, among others, in pursuit of our national interests," the spokesperson was quoted as saying.

Separately, Israel’s National Security Ministry also told Haaretz that representatives from the ministry and its agencies did not discuss the death penalty during the meeting.

Why no POFMA direction was issued

In his written reply, Shanmugam said Singapore regularly holds discussions with international counterparts on security and law enforcement matters.

Such engagements are important for the exchange of information and intelligence between agencies, he said, adding that they have enabled Singapore to identify potential threats, intervene early, and keep the country safe.

He reiterated that the meeting with the Israeli delegation focused on operational and security-related issues and did not extend to broader foreign policy matters.

"Singapore’s positions on such matters are addressed through the appropriate foreign policy channels, including by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA)," he said.

SM Shanmugam added that the contents of MHA’s exchanges with foreign counterparts are confidential and generally not publicised due to security concerns.

He said MHA had responded to the Haaretz article as its claims were "categorically false".

However, it was assessed that the public interest grounds for issuing a POFMA Direction were not met at the time.

Despite this, Shanmugam clarified that the decision did not preclude issuing a POFMA Direction later if circumstances materially changed and warranted a different assessment.

Shanmugam added that MHA’s approach to discussions with bilateral counterparts was focused on matters of shared operational and security concern.

"If (Fadli) believes that MHA should use such engagements to raise broader concerns about the policies or conduct of the country concerned, then he should say so clearly," he said in his reply.

Shanmugam also asked Fadli whether the same approach should apply consistently to all countries with which MHA engages.

"For example, when MHA holds operational discussions with other Middle Eastern or Asian countries, should we also raise the concerns Singapore may have with their conduct or policies?" he asked.

"If that is (Fadli's) position, the Government would be interested to understand how he proposes that such an approach would serve Singapore’s overall interests."

A vehicle collided with a wall panel at Jem’s basement carpark on the morning of Oct. 6, leaving a large hole in the panel near a lift lobby.

Responding to Mothership's queries, Lendlease, which manages the Jurong East shopping mall, said no injuries were reported.

Large hole near Lift Lobby 1

A photograph posted on Reddit showed a large hole in a wall marked “Lift Lobby 1”, with debris scattered on the floor beneath it.

The opening exposed part of the area behind the wall, where a travellator could be seen.

Lendlease confirmed to Mothership that the collision occurred at the mall’s B2 carpark.

Area cordoned off for repairs

Lendlease said its security and technical teams responded promptly to secure the area following the incident.

The affected section has been temporarily cordoned off, while repair works are being carried out.

“The safety of our shoppers, tenants and staff remains our top priority,” it said.

Lendlease added that operations at Jem were unaffected, and both the mall and carpark remain open as usual.

Its statement did not specify what led to the collision or when repairs are expected to be completed.

Tan Ee Ren remembers the moment he decided to become vegetarian at the age of 13.

Speaking to Mothership at Singapore’s first halal-certified, plant-based sushi train restaurant, Sauté Sushi at Paya Lebar Square, Tan said:

“I had watched some videos about the poultry industry, on how the animals are being processed, their lives taken against their will.”

Such documentaries left a deep, vivid impression on him which aligned with his own thinking and religion, Tan added.

“It made me think and sometimes, I teared too, putting myself in their shoes,” he recalled.

“So just one day, I remember, at 13 years old: I told myself in a canteen, from today onwards I’m not going to touch meat anymore,” Tan said.

It is a momentous decision that has stuck with him till today and one that has also served as the driving force behind his decision to open Sauté with his sister, Tan Ai Lin.

Sauté is not meant to make you feel guilty

Of course, that doesn’t mean his restaurant is aimed at making people feel guilty about eating meat, Tan clarified.

His restaurants do not carry any environmental messages, although this is a secondary outcome of going vegetarian.

“We just wanted to make Sauté taste nice and good, (for people) to step in, who just want to eat one meal that tastes nice without meat. We don’t want any kind of pressure on anyone,” he said.

Sauté, rather, is aimed at filling a “cuisine” gap – recreating entire cuisines as vegetarian, Tan elaborated.

It is an ambitious effort and a sign of Tan’s passion for delicious vegetarian food. Tan thinks that the “cuisine” gap might be due to an absence of people daring to venture out of their comfort zones.

While the market already had “delicious” vegetarian dishes that could be found at hawker centres and coffee shops, there was an absence of something like vegetarian Western cuisine, he noted.

The first outlet

Today, Sauté boasts an impressive five outlets, with a number of vegetarian cuisines available for any curious member of the public.

The one we visited, Sauté Sushi, is, as the name suggests, focused entirely on Japanese cuisine, complete with its own sushi train system to recreate the experience of dining at a sushi restaurant (and help overcome a manpower crunch as well).

Another outlet, Sauté Saranghae at Tampines One, is all about Korean cuisine, while Flavours by Sauté features a fusion of local and Western cuisine.

It’s a long way from the humble beginnings of their first outlet, Sauté, which opened at Bugis Cube in 2016, amidst multiple nail salons and massage parlours.

At that time, his wife was pregnant, which meant that besides his sister, his brother-in-law and parents had to come in after work to help.

“It was really tiring. I was sleeping in the kitchen while cutting vegetables. We couldn’t hire anyone yet.”

“The aircon also wasn’t really working and we had to rent a fan (because it was) stuffy,” Tan added with a smile.

However, the building’s management was kind enough to allow them to place chairs and tables outside their restaurant in order to accommodate the crowd.

When I asked what prompted them to move to City Square Mall two years later, Tan replied that they had received an email from an agent asking if they wanted to venture into City Square Mall. Tan said yes as he was keen to bring the brand greater visibility, as well as shift it to a more convenient location.

In addition, he wanted to change what he perceived was a public view that did not see vegetarian cuisine as a mainstream dining option.

“That’s where we really went in,” Tan said.

Scaling up and expanding the brand

That’s not to say that Tan’s plans for expansions were simply limited to just improving visibility, however.

From the moment he opened his first outlet at Bugis Cube, Tan had already set his mind on how he could build up a lasting brand, his wife, Soek Hui, recounted.

However, as they were unsure how to go about it, they approached one of Enterprise Singapore’s SME Centres.

Eventually, in 2019, they met Ben Teo, a senior business advisor from the SME Centre at Singapore Manufacturing Federation. He had experience in working with F&B businesses and could share with them various insights.

By this time, they had already opened a third outlet, Flavours by Sauté, and had plans in mind to open a fourth, under yet another name.

Teo advised them to standardise the brand’s name and image across all of the outlets.

“That’s (how) we have the brand colour, which is the white, black and green, and the fact that all outlets have the name Sauté,” Tan shared.

The kimchi manpower issue

Amidst their expansion with more outlets, another issue soon emerged – a manpower resource crunch.

Or more specifically, the allocation of manpower for the preparation of kimchi in their vegetarian Korean dishes – a process that can take up a lot of the staff’s time, when they could be attending to other matters, as both Hui and Tan shared.

Part of this has to do with the fact that many of the ingredients in their dishes are handmade, including their kimchi, which does not utilise ingredients such as onion and garlic.

For Tan, the restrictions on onion and garlic have a religious dimension.

Given that Korean cuisine has been one of the cuisines that Tan sought to recreate as vegetarian right from their very first outlet, he had initially sourced for kimchi from external vendors, only to realise that he could not find one that did not utilise garlic and onion, or was produced in a facility free from those ingredients.

This meant that they had to make the kimchi in their own kitchens, Tan pointed out, a process that now consumes the time of at least three of their outlets – Sauté Sushi, Sauté San and Sauté Saranghae.

The push to open a central kitchen

Fortunately there is one solution that has since emerged as an effective way of addressing this issue – establishing their own central kitchen.

The idea came about following a visit to another successful restaurant’s central kitchen, arranged by Teo.

Hui shared that what amazed them was the fact that this restaurant established their central kitchen when they only had one outlet.

“Meanwhile, we have five kitchens. All the more we needed to pull our resources together,” she said with a laugh.

She also admitted that initially, the idea of a central kitchen felt daunting, due to the machinery involved.

However, after the restaurant’s owner walked them through how they set up one, the costs that were involved, how they overcame the various challenges they faced, and eventually were even able to scale up to work with commercial clients, Hui and Tan felt much more confident in going ahead.

Since then, kimchi-making operations have been shifted to the central kitchen, allowing staff at the restaurants to better focus on customer service, and growing Sauté’s membership programme, Hui added.

Plans for the future

All that being said, Tan is still looking at how he can expand Sauté even further, given that the central kitchen has opened up possibilities, from expanding overseas, such as into Malaysia, to retailing ready-to-eat dishes.

In addition, the quest to craft new vegetarian dishes and cuisine continues - Tan and Hui shared that they travel to places like China and Japan to experience new ways of vegetarian cooking.

Thanks to Teo and the SME Centre, Tan has also been in contact with the Singapore Business Federation for overseas opportunities.

Tan’s brother-in-law and a co-founder of Sauté, Shah, added, “Actually, we are quite blessed to do business in Singapore.”

“If you are unsure about anything, you can just reach out (to the SME Centres) to explore available support,” he said.

Even though sleeping in the kitchen while cutting vegetables is a thing of the past, Tan pointed out that now, the pressure stems from the fact that multiple families, including those of their colleagues, are dependent on the success of their business.

But it is pressure that he has transformed into a driving force.

“So we always have the motivation to continue doing well in our mission of bringing people meatless food and introducing our cuisines to other people.”

This sponsored article actually made the author enjoy eating vegetarian dishes.

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An Italian man was sentenced to eight years' jail in Singapore on Oct. 7 for trafficking a Singaporean woman to Dubai and making her carry out sex work.

Achraf Arjaouy, 32, was also given six strokes of the cane and a S$9,000 fine.

He was previously found guilty on Apr. 22.

According to Singapore Courts' Integrated Case Management System (ICMS), the fine was not paid and he will serve an additional six weeks' jail by default.

Promised to marry woman

During previous court hearings, it was revealed that Arjaouy had met the victim on Tinder in April 2021.

Posing as a rich pilot from a wealthy Qatari family, he convinced the woman that he was going to marry her in Qatar after what was described as a "whirlwind courtship".

The woman agreed, and the pair then set off for Qatar via Dubai on Apr. 21, 2021.

Arjaouy told the victim she needed to show that she had US$10,000 (S$12,713) in order to enter Dubai.

When she revealed that she had insufficient funds, he then coerced her into engaging in sex work.

During his trial in August 2025, the prosecution accused Arjaouy of capitalising on the woman's confusion by subjecting her to "physical and psychological torture", committing acts of violence against her, and subjecting her to "humiliating and invasive sexual acts".

The woman was also subjected to degradation and threats of mutilation by Arjaouy, the court heard.

In mid-September 2021, the woman contracted a sexually transmitted disease.

The woman's mother went to the police in April 2021 when the woman asked for US$10,000 (S$12,713) shortly after arriving in Dubai.

The woman's ordeal ended in late November 2021 when she returned to Singapore.

Arjaouy came to Singapore in October 2022, and the pair got in touch again.

He was arrested in Singapore in November 2023 for an unrelated offence.

He previously posted a S$100,000 bail, but was remanded again in November 2025 after he reportedly assaulted his bailor, who was apparently his girlfriend, on several occasions.

Arjaouy has 16 other unrelated pending charges, including multiple counts of cheating, which will be dealt with at a later time, reported The Straits Times.

A Singapore court has ordered a six-month extension of an arrest warrant for fugitive Charles Yeo Yao Hui on Oct. 7.

The former Reform Party chairman has been on the run since 2022.

He was charged on Jan. 19, 2022, with three counts of insulting or threatening public officials, and another three for wounding the religious feelings of the Christian community.

According to the Singapore Courts’ integrated case management system (ICMS), he is also facing charges for cheating and absconding.

Yeo was granted permission to travel to Vietnam for work but later absconded while out on bail in July 2022.

He later posted on social media that he was seeking asylum in the United Kingdom (UK).

It was previously reported that Yeo was arrested in the UK and would have his extradition hearing in May 2025.

Arrest warrant extended

In a hearing on Oct. 7, the prosecution applied for a six-month extension of the arrest warrant for Yeo, Lianhe Zaobao reported.

The prosecution reportedly said that Yeo was overseas and uncontactable.

The judge granted the prosecution's application and reportedly suggested that the investigators could try to trace him in other ways.

The case was adjourned to Apr. 6, 2027, for further hearing.

To promote his hawker stall, a man made a TikTok video that begins with him pulling into a car park at Upper Boon Keng Market & Food Centre in a Rolls-Royce Phantom.

The video, uploaded on Sep. 15, sparked admiration as some were impressed that a hawker selling claypot dishes could afford to drive a Rolls-Royce.

It also raised some eyebrows from people who noticed the car's licence number, which can be seen in the video.

They pointed out that the car was recently listed for auction as one of the assets seized during a S$3 billion money laundering probe in Singapore.

At least 11 Rolls-Royce cars were included in a closed-bid auction by Sgcarmart Quotz in July 2026, The Straits Times reported.

Not his car

But Ezam told Mothership that he does not own the luxury car, but had borrowed it from his former boss for the video.

It is also true that the Rolls-Royce is linked to the S$3 billion money laundering case, according to him.

The car was put up for auction and his former boss made the winning bid, he said.

A marketing idea

The idea for the video came up over lunch between Ezam and two of his friends — a car dealer, and his former boss who owns the Rolls-Royce.

They envisioned getting Ezam to drive the car to the hawker centre where his stall was, and someone would approach him to ask what he did for a living to be able to drive a Rolls-Royce Phantom.

That was how the video eventually posted on TikTok went.

In the video, Ezam shares that he currently runs one outlet of his hawker business Seven Claypot in Singapore, along with three more in Johor Bahru, Malaysia.

His aunt has owned the Upper Boon Keng stall since 2004, he told Mothership.

When he suggested recently that she let him help her run the business, she agreed. He made some major changes, including revamping the menus, and now stepping up the marketing.

Responding to the comments

Many comments under his video believed that Ezam owns the Rolls-Royce, and expressed respect for him.

However, Ezam said he had also seen less positive comments where people questioned the car's ties to the money laundering case.

He underscored that his former boss, whom he worked with before venturing into the food industry, had bought the car legally.

"I don’t see any problem with it... As long as it is acquired legally, then I’m good," he said.

Apart from speculating about the origins of the Rolls-Royce, commenters also pointed out that Ezam parked at an accessible parking spot in the video even though he appeared able-bodied.

A comment under his video defended him, guessing that Ezam had decided to park at an accessible space as it would give him more space to capture the car fully in the video.

The user added that Ezam likely moved the car quickly after that frame was shot, and Ezam replied to say that he was in the spot for less than 15 seconds.

Regardless of how the response skewed, the video brought significant attention to Ezam's hawker stall.

"After the video went viral, the business went up," he said. "People have come from far just to catch a glimpse of the car. Some even asked permission to take a picture of it."

Given the success, he and his friends plan to make another promotional video for the stall, featuring not only the Rolls-Royce Phantom but also some of his friend’s supercars.

Related stories

Scott Lee, 29, and Troy Lee, 31, went from working in finance to selling Hakka yong tau foo and Malaysian-style noodles with black sauce.

However, five months of the hawker trade is enough for the brothers.

Their New Horse Noodles stall at Chinatown Complex Food Centre will be closing down.

The siblings announced in a video that the last day will be Sunday, Oct. 25.

Was doing something completely different

They admitted to Shin Min Daily News that the long hours was not what they wanted.

Scott, was a fintech product manager.

He reportedly earned S$5,000 to S$10,000 a month, he told 8days.

He also told Shin Min that he was tired of corporate office life and resigned in August 2025 before becoming a hawker.

Troy was a trader.

He said he always wanted to be in the catering business.

Went to Melaka to learn how to make yong tau foo

Both of them then took up vlogging and their food adventures took them to Melaka, Malaysia where they met an 85-year-old hawker of Hakka descent.

They spent 10 days learning how to make Hakka yong tau foo for free from her.

After about three months on working on their craft, their food stall opened in June 2026.

Hawker life not what they wanted

Scott said his parents were not supportive of their children's venture.

He subsequently ended up working 15 to 16 hours a day, which he found difficult, Shin Min reported.

8days reported that the brothers clocked 70-hour work weeks each when working at the stall.

They had invested S$20,000 and reportedly made "less than minimum wage".

Customers offered support

The impending closure announcement has come as a shock to some customers, Scott added.

Some regulars have asked them to continue and offered marketing services.

Scott thanked them for their support, Shin Min reported.

Both brothers said they have not ruled out returning to the tech world.

For those keen on paying the stall a visit, the siblings advised going before 1pm.

The stall, open from Saturday to Wednesday, sells stuffed tau kee, tau pok, and bitter gourd in soup with noodles.

A Chinese fitness influencer who celebrated a personal best at the Berlin Marathon has apologised after photographs emerged showing her accepting a bicycle ride during the race.

Known online as Abeeeer, she admitted in a social media statement that she had violated race rules and deliberately concealed the incident when sharing her results afterwards.

Her sponsor, Brooks China, subsequently announced it had ended its partnership with her.

Celebrated personal best

Abeeeer, whose real name is Sun Yuanyuan, shared her Berlin Marathon finish timing to her nearly 530,000 Xiaohongshu followers, according to Southern Metropolis Daily.

In her post after the Sep. 27 race, she described feeling comfortable early on and shared the approach she said helped her persevere.

“The first 15km went smoothly and felt comfortable. I kept telling myself that slow is fast,” she captioned her celebratory post in Chinese. 

She claimed a personal best of 4 hours, 53 minutes and 46 seconds. However, photographs subsequently circulated showed her sitting on the back of a bicycle near the 38km mark. 

The images were first posted by the Official Marathon Time Integrity Unit (OMTIU), an unofficial "watchdog" page. Its Instagram account investigates questionable race results, particularly those claimed by running influencers, and publishes its findings.

After reviewing her race timings, OMTIU flagged a section of the results showing she covered the stretch from 35km to 40km in 30 minutes and 49 seconds, her fastest 5km split of the race. That section matched up with the area where she was photographed riding a bicycle. 

Sun said she initially intended to withdraw 

According to Lianhe Zaobao, Sun initially explained that she felt unwell at the 38km mark and accepted a friend’s bicycle ride to find a race official with the intention to withdraw.

She claimed she later decided to continue after being told she could still finish and achieve a personal best. She also claimed she returned to where she had boarded the bicycle and did not shorten the distance she needed to complete.

Admitted to concealing the bicycle ride

Sun published an apology on Oct. 3.

In her statement, titled “A sincere apology”, she acknowledged that accepting the bicycle ride violated the rules.

“I won't make any excuses for this behaviour,” she wrote.

The influencer said feeling unwell on the course should never have been a reason to break the rules, and acknowledged that her actions showed disrespect for the "fairness of the competition and the spirit of the marathon".

She also admitted that her conduct extended to how she presented her achievement afterwards:

“After the race, I deliberately hid this fact when sharing my experience with others. That was very dishonest and went against the sportsmanship of fair play in marathons. I feel deeply guilty about this."

She apologised to everyone and said she was reflecting deeply on her actions.

“When you are wrong, you must accept criticism and supervision,” she concluded.

Sun later reposted her apology, saying Xiaohongshu had removed the original post after users reported it. She clarified that she had not deleted it herself.

Brooks China ends partnership

In an Oct. 4 statement posted on its Xiaohongshu account, Brooks China announced it had ended its partnership with Sun.

They said that after learning of the relevant circumstances, they had "immediately terminated" their partnetship with Sun, and would never work with her again.

Brooks said it had agreed to support her participation in the Berlin Marathon and supplied race equipment after learning about her training plans and race goals.

However, it acknowledged shortcomings in its checks after the race.

The brand apologised following the incident, acknowledging that this was an oversight on its part.

It said it would select partners more carefully, review the incident and improve its procedures for assessing partnerships and managing risks involving races.

A monthly audit at a Singapore healthcare facility found several issues, including patients falling from beds and wheelchairs and improperly-labelled supplies.

The findings of the audit, which took place on Sep. 17, were circulated in a staff directive which was viewed by Mothership.

The facility itself is Transitional Care Facility @ East (TCF@East), a step-down care environment for patients awaiting long-term care or home placement.

In response to Mothership's queries, HHOM Pte Ltd, a subsidiary of MOH Holdings which conducted the audit, said that they have since followed up with the operator on areas of improvement.

Fall incidents

The directive made explicit mention of two fall incidents which took place in August and September this year.

The first patient was reportedly seated in a wheelchair without a safety belt. They attempted to stand, tripped over the footrest, and fell.

The second patient reportedly fell out of his bed while the nurse-in-charge was occupied and the junior staff was on break.

He was later found on the floor.

Both were listed as "preventable falls" concerning "high-risk" patients, according to the directive.

In the second case, it was noted that "supervision was limited at the time" as both staff members were otherwise occupied.

Other issues

The directive also alleged that other issues had been found, including improperly-stored and labelled items, dustbins that went unemptied, and expired medication.

Patients were also found sleeping without their bed rails raised for safety, according to the message.

A staff member, who spoke to Mothership on condition of anonymity, said that they had observed issues with patient safety over their time working there.

Earlier in May, it was reported that the same facility issued a directive to its nurses, requiring them to give advance notice when applying for medical leave or risk having their salary deducted.

It later claimed it was a misunderstanding.

Follow-up

In its Oct. 7 reply to Mothership, HHOM confirmed that it had identified "some areas of improvement relating to the storage and labelling of supplies", although no expired medication was found.

It also confirmed that a bed rail was observed to have been left down while a patient was sleeping.

As to the fall incidents, HHOM said it takes such reports "seriously", and has since followed up with the facility on areas of improvement.

"HHOM will continue to work closely with TCF operators and monitor their practices to ensure that patient safety and quality of care remain a priority," a spokesperson said.

The U.S. woman who survived her failed execution attempt with two lethal injections is now conscious, speaking, and receiving medical attention.

According to NBC News, her lawyers said in a media statement that Christa Gail Pike, 50, has been under medical care while remaining handcuffed and shackled in hospital.

Pike survived two doses of pentobarbital during her execution on Sep. 30, which her lawyers claim resulted in significant injuries to her arms.

Her attorneys said that they expect a "long recovery", and thanked Pike's medical team as well as the "thousands from all over the world who sent messages offering prayers and support for [her]."

Both her legal team and criminology experts have described her survival and recovery as "unprecedented", reported the BBC.

She is believed to be the only person to have ever survived a lethal injection.

While there were other cases in which condemned prisoners survived lethal injections, executioners were unable to inject any substance into the prisoners' veins in those instances, according to an expert who spoke to the BBC.

A Tennessee governor called for an independent review to the botched execution in response, and halted all remaining executions for the rest of the year.

The incident also led to the resignation of the Tennessee prison chief, reported NBC News.

The prison chief stated that he believed that the execution process was carried out "in accordance with the established protocol", but nevertheless decided to step down for the "best interest of Tennesseans".

Prison officials carried out the ultimately-botched execution for Pike's sentence for committing a murder in 1995.

Who is Pike?

Pike and her boyfriend Tadaryl Shipp tortured and murdered one Colleen Slemmer for more than 30 minutes, and killed her by smashing her head with a block of asphalt.

Pike then kept a piece of Slemmer's skull.

According to People, Shipp was sentenced to life imprisonment while another friend who acted as a lookout received a lighter sentence of 460 days' imprisonment, after she agreed to a plea deal in exchange for testifying against them.

Pike was the first woman in Tennessee to be given the death penalty in over 200 years.

NBC News reported that May Martinez, the mother of the victim, said that the failed execution was a "mess".

Martinez has insisted that Pike ought to remain on death row.

According to the BBC, the authorities have not yet confirmed whether they will make another execution attempt.