Couple jailed up to 16 years each for fatal abuse of 8-month-old son

A couple who repeatedly abused their eight-month-old son were sentenced to jail on Wednesday (Oct 21).

Trevor died in September 2024 after suffering months of abuse.

Chloe Gan Ci Xuan, 23, was sentenced to 15 years and three months in prison, while her husband, Neo Jia Ming, 27, received a 16-year jail term for offences linked to the death of their son, Trevor Neo Yu Hin, reported The Straits Times.

Both parents pleaded guilty to charges involving the death and ill-treatment of their son.

Neo also admitted to permitting his wife to abuse the infant and committing domestic abuse against her.

Delivering the sentences, Justice Hoo Sheau Peng said the couple's youth and inexperience as first-time parents did not excuse their actions, noting that they had received support from relatives and employed a nanny to help care for the child.

Gan and Neo married in August 2023, after Gan became pregnant earlier that year.

Following Trevor's birth on Dec 9, 2023, Gan initially stayed with her parents and a confinement nanny before moving in with Neo and his uncles.

In February 2024, the couple hired a nanny to care for Trevor on weekdays, while relatives helped look after him during weekends.

Infant suffered repeated abuse before his death

Despite having support available, the couple repeatedly resorted to physical violence whenever Trevor cried.

Gan learned that shaking the infant vigorously could stop him from crying or cause him to lose consciousness after witnessing Neo do the same.

In May 2024, Gan's mother noticed bruises on the infant's body and warned her daughter to stop hitting him, but she continued with the abuse.

Trevor had previously been taken to hospital on two occasions following incidents of abuse.

In January 2024, he was hospitalised for about a week after losing consciousness when Gan shook him.

In April, a nanny noticed bleeding beneath his tongue and insisted that he be taken to hospital. Doctors found signs of local trauma and redness beneath the infant's tongue.

Trevor died in early September 2024 after Gan repeatedly smothered him to stop him from crying, while Neo was in the same room playing a game on his phone.

Between 9.30pm and 11.30pm, Gan repeatedly pressed on her son's nose and mouth before turning Trevor face-down and leaving him in that position before going to sleep.

When Neo discovered that Trevor had turned cold and unresponsive, the couple attempted to resuscitate him before taking him to hospital.

Court rejects father's attempt to minimise responsibility

During sentencing, Neo argued that Gan had carried out the fatal acts and that his own responsibility was considerably lower, according to The Straits Times.

Justice Hoo rejected the argument that a person who allows a child's death is necessarily less culpable than one who directly causes it.

The court noted that Neo had been the first to shake Trevor to stop him crying and the first to smother him. He had also subjected Gan to abuse.

In determining Gan's sentence, Justice Hoo compared the case with that of Megan Khung , a four-year-old girl who died in February 2020 after prolonged abuse by her mother, Foo Li Ping, and her boyfriend, Wong Shi Xiang.

The judge noted that Trevor was even younger and more vulnerable than Megan, as he was only eight months old and unable to communicate his suffering or seek help.

However, the abuse in Trevor's case lasted for a shorter period, and the harm caused by the earlier assaults was assessed as less severe than in Megan's case.

The court also considered that the couple had attempted to resuscitate Trevor and taken him to hospital after the fatal incident.

Under Singapore law, causing the death of a child carries a maximum penalty of 20 years' imprisonment and a fine or caning.

xingying.koh@asiaone.com

一对夫妇因多次虐待他们八个月大的儿子，于周三（10月21日）被判入狱。

特雷弗在遭受数月虐待后于 2024 年 9 月去世。

据《海峡时报》报道，23岁的Chloe Gan Ci Xuan被判处15年零3个月监禁，而她27岁的丈夫Neo Jia Ming因与他们儿子Trevor Neo Yu Hin的死亡有关的罪行被判处16年监禁。

这对父母均承认了与儿子死亡和虐待有关的指控。

尼奥还承认纵容妻子虐待婴儿，并对妻子实施家庭暴力。

胡秀萍法官在宣判时表示，这对夫妇年轻且缺乏为人父母的经验并不能成为他们犯罪的借口，并指出他们得到了亲戚的支持，还雇佣了一名保姆来帮助照顾孩子。

甘和Neo于2023年8月结婚，此前甘在当年早些时候怀孕。

Trevor 于 2023 年 12 月 9 日出生后，Gan 最初和父母以及月嫂住在一起，之后搬去和 Neo 以及他的叔叔们一起住。

2024 年 2 月，这对夫妇雇佣了一名保姆在工作日照顾 Trevor，而周末则由亲戚帮忙照顾他。

婴儿在去世前曾多次遭受虐待

尽管有亲友可以提供帮助，但每当特雷弗哭泣时，这对夫妇还是屡次诉诸暴力。

甘看到尼奥用力摇晃婴儿，便知道这样做可以阻止婴儿哭泣，或者使婴儿失去意识。

2024 年 5 月，甘的母亲发现婴儿身上有瘀伤，并警告女儿不要再打他，但她仍然继续虐待他。

特雷弗此前曾因遭受虐待两次被送往医院。

2024年1月，甘某摇晃他后导致他失去意识，住院约一周。

四月份，一位保姆发现婴儿舌头下方出血，坚持要送他去医院。医生发现婴儿舌头下方有局部外伤和发红的迹象。

2024 年 9 月初，特雷弗去世了，当时甘为了阻止他哭泣，反复捂住他的口鼻，而尼奥当时就在同一个房间里玩手机游戏。

晚上 9 点 30 分到 11 点 30 分之间，甘女士反复按压儿子的鼻子和嘴巴，然后将特雷弗翻过身，让他保持这个姿势，之后自己就去睡觉了。

当尼奥发现特雷弗身体冰冷、没有反应时，这对夫妇试图对他进行抢救，然后才将他送往医院。

法院驳回父亲试图减轻自身责任的请求。

据《海峡时报》报道，在量刑听证会上，Neo辩称是Gan实施了致命行为，而他自己的责任要小得多。

胡法官驳斥了这样一种观点，即允许儿童死亡的人的罪责必然比直接导致儿童死亡的人轻。

法庭指出，尼奥是第一个摇晃特雷弗以阻止他哭泣的人，也是第一个捂住特雷弗的嘴让他窒息的人。他还虐待过甘。

在确定甘某的刑期时，胡法官将此案与梅根·孔案进行了比较。梅根·孔是一名四岁女孩，于 2020 年 2 月因长期遭受母亲傅丽萍和男友黄世祥的虐待而死亡。

法官指出，特雷弗比梅根还要年幼，也更加脆弱，因为他只有八个月大，无法表达自己的痛苦或寻求帮助。

然而，特雷弗遭受虐待的时间较短，而且早期袭击造成的伤害也被评估为比梅根遭受的虐待要轻。

法庭还考虑到，在致命事件发生后，这对夫妇曾试图抢救特雷弗，并将他送往医院。

根据新加坡法律，造成儿童死亡最高可判处 20 年监禁并处罚金或鞭刑。

邢莹.koh@asiaone.com