Neighbour found murder accused cradling wife’s lifeless body
A murder trial witness told how he found his next door neighbour “wailing with grief” as he cradled his wife’s lifeless body in his arms on the floor of her sewing workroom where she lay slumped.
Peter Mansell had been alerted by building boss Gurpreet Singh’s two children who had ran to him for help in a distressed state, one of them saying “my mom is dead”.
He had been at home in Rookery Lane, Penn, Wolverhampton, for most of the day working on his computer and had heard nothing suspicious, he told the jury.
But that afternoon he saw Singh’s ten year old son and daughter, aged 11, running up his drive in their school uniforms on their own.
“They were very agitated, the girl in particular. She said: ‘My mom is dead’,” said Mr Mansell.
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He took the children into his house and left them with his father while he went next door where he was greeted by Singh’s brother, known as Harry, he told Birmingham Crown Court.
“I saw as I went in that the kitchen was a total mess. I turned left into the living room where I was led by Harry and I saw the dead lady lying on the ground being cradled by Sonny, as I know him. He was wailing with grief,” said Mr Mansell.
Singh is alleged to have strangled his wife, 38 year old Sarbjit Kaur, with the help of an accomplice between 8.15-9am on February 16 last year before leaving for work.
He is also accused of soliciting the murder of his first wife, Amandeep Kaur, in 2014.
Mr Mansell said he left the property to call the emergency services as Singh’s brother who was already on the phone to a 999 operator was “getting agitated”.
He said: “I thought maybe I could help.”
When Mr Mansell’s call was replayed to the court, the defendant’s high pitched cries could be heard in the background.
He said Singh had lived next door for nine years, initially when he was married to Amandeep, and there had never been any issues between them as neighbours.
He said he had become aware of Amandeep’s death in India and subsequently that his neighbour had married again.
He said he had seen a young lady going in and out the house and on one occasion she had told him “I’m Mrs Sonny now”.
Singh is alleged to have thrown chilli powder in the victim’s face to incapacitate her before carrying out the murder.
A resident’s CCTV showed what the prosecution say was an accomplice being let into the house around the time of Sarbjit Kaur’s death.
Singh, of Coalway Avenue, Penn, denies murdering Sarbjit Kaur and also pleads not guilty to soliciting the murder of Amandeep Kaur.
The trial continues.
