Jailed – man who gave in to everything his mentally challenged daughter demanded for years kills her in the end.

Assessment finds man was stressed from caring for the mentally ill adult

FOR years, a “selfless, loving and devoted father” tirelessly cared for his demanding adult daughter, who scolded her parents incessantly, constantly found fault with them and even made them bow before her.

The unemployed woman, Desiree Tan Jiaping, told her parents to transfer their money to her and even told her father, a private-hire driver, that he needed to drive more frequently to earn more money.

Tan Tian Chye, 66, and his wife did whatever was necessary to pacify their daughter, who had been diagnosed with a mental disorder but refused treatment. Once, he even slapped his wife in front of their daughter to appease her.

On Nov 19, 2018, after Desiree told her father that she felt like killing him and then pointed a knife at him, the two had a confrontation in the kitchen of their Bedok South flat, which ended with Tan strangling his 35-year-old daughter.

Yesterday, he was sentenced to two years and nine months’ jail after pleading guilty to a reduced charge of culpable homicide.

A psychiatric assessment found that Tan was suffering from a major depressive episode and significant caregiver stress, which substantially impaired his mental responsibility for his acts in killing his daughter.

The sentence was backdated to the date he was remanded in custody and he is expected to be released from prison this week.

High Court Judge Hoo Sheau Peng said this was a tragic case, which also served as a stark reminder about the importance of paying attention to the mental health of family members and seeking timely treatment.

“From all accounts, you have been a selfless, loving and devoted father who spent years tirelessly caring for your daughter,” said

Justice Hoo. She noted that Tan will continue to suffer the pain and anguish of his actions.

“It is, I believe, the wish of all of us present, that the accused, as well as his family, will, with time, come to terms with what they had undergone, and experience a measure of closure and healing in their lives,” she said.

The court heard that Desiree could not hold on to a full-time job after graduating from university in 2006 and depended on her parents to provide for her.

In 2012, she was taken to Changi General Hospital after she fainted at an MRT station. She was assessed to have “panic attacks with agoraphobia” – a condition where sufferers become anxious in unfamiliar environments – and “hypochondriacal preoccupations”.

Since then, she became very anxious about leaving the flat on her own and her boyfriend moved into the flat to live with her.

She also became more particular and demanding towards her family members and her boyfriend.

She would ask her parents to clean items in the flat repeatedly until she was satisfied and also made them go back to the food stall if they got her order wrong.