Bio

Suchnam Singh Sandhu was born in 1929 in Punjab, India. He grew up in a Sikh family, where he received a good education. He worked as a schoolteacher in his native village of Jullundor before moving to England. Suchnam was skilled in English and had aspirations for a better life for his family.

In September 1967, Suchnam moved to London with his wife and two daughters. They hoped that life in England would provide more opportunities, especially for his eldest daughter, Sarabjit Kaur. She was 19 years old and had dreams of becoming a doctor. Sarabjit had attended the Delhi School of Nursing, and her father's goal was to support her education in nursing.

However, Sarabjit faced personal challenges. Before leaving India, she fell in love with a married cousin, which caused tension between her and her father. Once in England, she enrolled at East Ham College of Technology. Despite her studies, Sarabjit continued to communicate with her lover through letters.

Suchnam discovered Sarabjit's secret relationship and became very upset. He began to physically abuse her in response. Sarabjit felt she could not remain in the family home anymore and moved out in November 1967 to live in a flat in Ilford. Shortly after, Sarabjit learned she was pregnant and visited a doctor. She faced a difficult situation and eventually decided to return home to tell her parents about her pregnancy.

After returning home, her father arranged for an illegal abortion for her, but the circumstances of their relationship continued to strain. Tensions grew between Suchnam and Sarabjit, leading to conflicts during their interactions.

On April 4, 1968, a heated argument occurred between Suchnam and Sarabjit at their home. The argument escalated, leading to significant events that would change their family's life forever.

Murder Story

On April 4, 1968, Suchnam Singh Sandhu had spent the morning at his home in Baking, London. He had a heated argument with his nineteen-year-old daughter, Sarabjit Kaur. During the argument, Sarabjit claimed she had taken a large overdose of phenobarbital tablets and left a suicide note. In a state of panic and anger, Suchnam struck Sarabjit twice with a hammer, causing her to fall to the floor.

After believing she was dead, Suchnam went to a hardware store and purchased a hacksaw. He returned home, changed his clothes, and placed Sarabjit’s body into a large plastic bag to avoid bloodshed. He began dismembering her body, and Sarabjit regained consciousness while he was trying to decapitate her. Despite her attempts to grab the saw, he completed the act of dismemberment.

Suchnam then wrapped the parts of her body in various bags and suitcases. He hid the torso in an olive-green suitcase and the head in a canvas bag. After cleaning up the blood, he disposed of the tools and the hammer. That afternoon, he traveled to central London with one of the suitcases but left another suitcase behind on a train.

The next morning, Suchnam disposed of Sarabjit’s head in bushes while commuting to work. Meanwhile, train employees discovered the torso in one of the abandoned suitcases, leading to a police investigation. The police later found the second suitcase containing her head after it was discovered by a cyclist.

Investigators pieced together the evidence linking the body to Sarabjit Kaur. After some time, they tracked down Suchnam Singh Sandhu and brought him in for questioning. He initially denied knowing her but later confessed to the crime, providing a story about accidental death and claiming he had acted in shock.

The authorities gathered enough evidence, including blood traces from his home and fingerprints from Sarabjit’s belongings, to link him definitively to the dismemberment. Suchnam was arrested on May 11, 1968.

He was tried at the Old Bailey in November 1968. The jury found him guilty within 90 minutes, and he was sentenced to life imprisonment.