Crime
New Zealand Women Found Guilty of Christmas Day Murder of Indian Sikh Partner
Representational Picture Photo Credit: Bigstock
Franchesca Kororia Borell claimed she threw a knife at Deol but did not mean to kill him.
A court in New Zealand has found the partner of Indian Sikh Hardeep Singh Deol guilty of killing him two years ago. The court convicted Franchesca Kororia Borell on Oct.16 for murdering Deol on Christmas day in 2016.
26-year old Deol was fatally stabbed by Borell on Dec.25, 2016. He later died in a hospital due to critical wounds. Borell was arrested over the charges of murder and went through trial.
Borell, aged 24, admitted in the Christchurch High Court that she threw a knife at Deol but denied that she intended to kill him. However, the court sided with the Crown’s evidences, which showed that Deol died of stab wounds and not of injury made by thrown knife, reported New Zealand Herald.
The court said that Borell’s actions amounted to the murder of Deol, the publication added.
Some family members of Deol traveled to New Zealand from India to attend the trial proceedings but his parents couldn’t make it.
Detective Sergeant Andrew Ownes expressed his satisfaction over the verdict and sympathy for the grieved family and said in a statement, “We would like to acknowledge the impact this investigation has had and will continue to have on them, particularly on Hardeep’s parents who were unable to make it today.”
He also hoped that the conviction would provide Deol’s family some relief.
“We hope this result provides some closure to them, however, we know it does nothing to replace the loss of their son, brother and friend,” he said.
“We would like to thank the Christchurch Indian community, who along with the general public have assisted with this case. Our thoughts are also with the whänau of Borell as this has also impacted significantly on them,” he added. “Whänau” is Maori word for extended family members.
The Indian Weekender said in its report that Doel belonged to the Sirsa district in Haryana, India. He had come to New Zealand to study hotel management in 2014 after completing his B Tech from a private college in Punjab, India.