A 28-year-old man allegedly locked the windows, switched off the air-conditioning, and used a refrigerator to block the bedroom door, confining his pregnant girlfriend inside. He then burned charcoal in the room. The girlfriend, in desperation, climbed out of the window to escape. She fell heavily from the second floor to the ground, then ran to a nearby gym for help.
According to Shin Min Daily News, the accused, Hans Pratignyo, 28, is an Indonesian and a Singapore permanent resident. His girlfriend, 25, also from Indonesia, was already five months pregnant with his child at the time of the incident.
Hans now faces six charges, including voluntarily causing hurt, wrongful confinement, and criminal intimidation. He admitted to three of the charges in court this morning, while the rest will be considered during sentencing.
Investigations showed that on December 1 last year, at around 10 pm, Hans closed all the windows, drew the curtains, and unplugged the air-conditioner in his rented room. After that, he went to a nearby supermarket to buy three packs of charcoal and several lighters.
When he returned, he locked the room door and pushed the fridge against it, trapping his girlfriend inside.
The girlfriend went to the toilet, but Hans then lit a tissue paper on fire and placed it on top of the charcoal he had stacked at the toilet door, trying to scare her.
The next morning, around 8 am, Hans started burning the charcoal inside the room, causing thick smoke to fill the air. He then dragged his girlfriend into the toilet, forced her to sit on the toilet seat, and muttered repeatedly:
“Don’t kill my girlfriend.”
The smoke made her eyes sting badly. Worried for her safety, she begged Hans to let her stay outside the toilet for two hours, promising him that she would listen to him.
After stepping out, the couple got into a struggle. The girlfriend fell onto the floor, and Hans pressed his hands around her neck, choking her until she couldn’t breathe for a moment.
She managed to break free and quickly tried to climb out of the window for help. Hans attempted to pull her back in, but during the struggle, she fell from the second-floor unit to the ground floor, landing on her right hip.
Despite her injury, she ran to the gym at the void deck of the opposite block to ask for help.
Neighbours who saw what happened immediately called the police, and Hans was arrested on the spot.
Muttered “Don’t kill my girlfriend”, found to have delusional disorder
While committing the act, Hans kept chanting: “Don’t kill my girlfriend.” He was later diagnosed with delusional disorder.
According to a report from the Institute of Mental Health, Hans suffers from delusional disorder, a serious mental illness that makes him imagine situations that are not real.
Psychiatrists said his behaviour was very likely linked to his condition and recommended that he undergo treatment.
Because of this, the prosecutor did not object to Hans being sent for a mandatory treatment order assessment. The court will only decide on sentencing after the report is ready.
Hans’ lawyer also said they will wait for the report before making their plea for leniency.
