The media's fear-porn works, but they'll never admit it.
Quote:Mother, 36, killed daughter, five, by knifing her 15 times then turned blade on herself after lockdowns
left her 'petrified' she would die from Covid leaving the girl without her - as she's sent for indefinite
term to mental unit
*Sutha Sivanantham, 36, has been sent for an indefinite term in a mental unit
*She stabbed her five-year-old daughter Sayagi 15 times in the throat and chest
*Sutha turned the blade on herself and has been left with a colostomy bag
'A mother who killed her five-year-old daughter by knifing her 15 times in the throat and chest before turning the blade
on herself has been sent to a mental unit. Sutha Sivanantham, 36, has been left with a colostomy bag and spent
several months in hospital after stabbing herself in the stomach at her home in Mitcham.
Sutha Sivanantham, and her daughter Sayagi.
She stabbed her daughter Sayagi 15 times in the bedroom of their south London flat in June last year, the Old Bailey
heard, with two wounds puncturing the little girl's heart. The mother had been complaining of mystery ailments for almost
a year and her husband said fear of the virus and lockdown restrictions pushed her over the edge.
Sainsbury's employee Suganthan was working when he received the call that his wife had killed their daughter.
He sobbed loudly in the dock as his impact statement was read to the court.
'I believe Covid restrictions may have had a negative effect on her wellbeing,' Mr Sivanantham said. 'She took the
restrictions seriously and was petrified about catching the virus.'
The court heard Sutha spoke no English and had been living in the UK since 2006 after an arranged marriage with her
husband. He described her as 'a very good mother'. In the autumn of 2019 she started to complain of mysterious pains
and went to A&E several times. By the summer of the following year she complained of dizziness and weight loss as
she plummeted to just seven and a half stone.
'The defendant had developed a morbid concern she was suffering from undiagnosed serious illness,' said prosecutor
Bill Emlyn-Jones. 'She appears to have become convinced that she was going to die.'
Hospital tests revealed Sutha had been infected with Covid 19 at some point.
'The night before the incident, she had specifically asked her husband if he would take care of the children in the event of
her death,' Mr Emlyn-Jones said. 'On the morning of 30th June 2020, she asked her husband not to go to work, but he
explained that he had to go, leaving the defendant at home.'
Sutha phoned friends during the day complaining about her health but they were not concerned. At around 4pm neighbours
rushed to the flat after hearing the sound of screaming and found a 'bloodbath'. 'They found the defendant on the floor, with a
serious stab wound to her abdomen,' Mr Emlyn-Jones said. 'Sayagi, who was lying on the bed, had been stabbed several
times in the neck, chest and abdomen.
'A knife was seen embedded in Sayagi's shoulder, which fell out when she was moved to be treated on the instructions of
the 999 operator.'...'
Quote:'...Sutha denied murdering her daughter but admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.Archived Daily Mail Article:
The prosecution accepted the plea.
In his impact statement her husband said: 'I get very emotional having to relive what has happened to my daughter and my wife.'
He said before the killing the family had lived a 'happy fulfilling and blissful life'. Since then he has had to give up work and 'each
day is a struggle'. Mr Sivanantham said he has not spoken to his wife but accepts she was not responsible for her actions.
'I know that if she was well she would not have been able to kill our daughter,' he said.
Passing sentence Judge Wendy Joseph said the case was a 'terrible tragedy.'
'What is clear is that the ongoing mental illness was not fully appreciated by anyone around her, including her doctors,' the judge said.
'She developed a morbid concern that she was seriously ill and became convinced she was going to die.
'She was due to have further hospital tests the next day and was clearly depressed, possibly about what would be found.
'She went to the bedroom for a lie down. She took Sayagi with her. She also took two knives.'
The judge said the lockdown may have contributed to the mother's illness...'
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