Singaporean man starved and assaulted his mother when stressed by university exams
- Andy Koh Ju Hua, who was studying for a Master’s degree, pleaded guilty to four counts of voluntarily causing hurt
- His 68-year-old mother was hospitalised three times and placed in a safe house but insisted each time on returning to her family
Andy Koh Ju Hua, who was studying for a Master’s degree at the National University of Singapore at the time, also assaulted his mother’s vaginal area with a metal padlock and with his knee.
Koh, who has been remanded since November 2020, said he loved his mother and hopes to reunite with her and “live happily ever after” with her after receiving treatment for a purported “psychotic disorder”.
The court heard that Koh lived with his mother and father but began physically abusing his mother in 2017. He starved her and did not allow her to shower or make noise when he was stressed with his studies.
In the early years of the abuse, the victim refused to file police reports because she did not want to jeopardise her son’s future, and sought refuge intermittently with her nephew and niece.