Tarikjot Singh, who was convicted last year for the gruesome murder of his former girlfriend Jasmeen Kaur, has had his non-parole period extended by more than five years.
Singh was originally sentenced to life in prison with a non-parole period of 22 years and 10 months. Now, he will be required to serve 28 years and six months before being eligible for parole.
The extension comes after the Court of Criminal Appeal reconsidered the case on Thursday, following an appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), who argued that the original non-parole period was “manifestly inadequate.”
In March 2021, when Singh, then 20, abducted the 21-year-old nursing student Jasmeen Kaur from her workplace in Adelaide’s western suburbs. It was reported that after binding her with tape and cable ties, Singh drove Kaur to Moralana Creek, near Hawker in the Flinders Ranges, where he buried her alive.
Kaur and Singh had been in a relationship that ended in early 2021. Shortly after their breakup, Kaur reported to police that Singh had been stalking her. Singh was cautioned by police in early February 2021, less than a month before the murder.
Justice Adam Kimber, who presided over the initial sentencing, described the murder as “horrific” and “callous in the extreme,” expressing his inability to adequately convey the terror Kaur must have felt in her final moments.
“I am unable to find words to adequate describe how Ms Kaur must have felt when you placed her in the grave and buried her,” Justice Kimber said.
“The terror she felt when she was abducted, restrained and kept in the car during the long drive to Moralana Creek is difficult enough to estimate. I cannot describe the terror Ms Kaur must have been experiencing when she realised you were burying her alive.”
The court also heard that Singh had not disclosed the details of how he abducted Kaur or what transpired in the hours leading up to her death.
Singh’s crime was characterised as premeditated and methodical, with Singh having ample time to reconsider his actions but choosing to proceed with the murder.
Initially, Singh misled police by claiming he could not remember when he last saw Kaur and asserting he was at home on the night of the murder. Later, he led police to the burial site, where Kaur’s personal items, including her shoes, glasses, and work name badge, were discovered in a bin alongside looped cable ties.
In 2021, Jasmeen’s family and friends visited the shallow grave where she was buried and planted native plants, laid teddies and flowers, and prayed.
Singh also pleaded not guilty to murdering Ms Kaur but changed his plea a month before his Supreme Court trial was due to start in March 2023.
Singh, now 24, will be eligible to apply for parole in September 2049, at which time he will be 49 years old. He is an Indian national who came to Australia to study IT at university and also worked as a respite carer. After serving his extended sentence, it is anticipated that Singh will be deported to India upon his release.
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