An Indian migrant who fatally stabbed his wife inside a rented basement suite in Canada, just six days after arriving in the country, has been found guilty of murder.
Jagpreet Singh deliberately killed his 41-year-old wife, Balwinder Kaur, at a suite in a $1.3 million home in Abbotsford, British Columbia, on March 15, 2024, British Columbia Supreme Court Justice Andrea Ormiston has ruled.
The court heard that Kaur suffered seven stab wounds to her neck and chest. A coroner determined she died from severe blood loss.
During the trial, Singh did not dispute that he stabbed his wife of 20 years, but argued that the violence began after Kaur allegedly swung a knife at him first.
According to the judge’s decision, Singh claimed the couple had been arguing about his need to find work when the confrontation escalated, and he admitted punching Kaur in the face.
Singh testified that he later approached Kaur to apologize, but said she then produced a knife, according to the court filing.
He told the court he “accidentally poked her with the knife in her stomach” while attempting to disarm her, and said he had “no memory” of the fatal attack that followed, the filing stated.
Singh maintained that he did not mean to kill his wife, claiming the stabbing happened “in the heat of passion caused by sudden provocation,” the court heard.
He argued that he should have been convicted of a lesser charge of manslaughter, but the judge has now formally rejected his argument and convicted him of second-degree murder.
Balwinder Kaur, left, was fatally stabbed seven times in the neck and chest by her husband Jagpreet Singh, right, at their residence in Abbotsford, British Columbia, a court heard
Kaur and Singh had gone to a gurdwara, a Sikh house of worship, and the mall on the night of the fatal stabbing, the court filing said.
The couple took an Uber home around 9.30pm, with prosecutors estimating that Kaur was killed within an hour of their return.
A neighbor visited their basement suite at 10.38pm and found Kaur lying on the floor in the doorway with a ‘large pool of blood around her.’ Singh was on the sofa nearby.
The couple were the only people in the unit when officers arrived on the scene, the court heard. He was arrested immediately.
Kaur was taken to nearby Abbotsford Hospital for emergency treatment, but doctors were unable to save her. She was pronounced dead just after midnight on March 16.
In her June 2026 decision, Justice Ormiston ruled that Singh presented ‘untrustworthy and unreliable’ evidence that failed to raise ‘reasonable doubt’ about his intention to kill his wife.
‘I have found Mr Singh’s evidence about what transpired between him and Ms Kaur in the time leading up to her death to be entirely unreliable, particularly on critical points such as the nature of the conflict between them before Ms Kaur was stabbed, and Mr Singh’s ensuing memory loss,’ she wrote.
She also dismissed the suggestion that Singh stabbed his wife in an act of self defense.
‘Even though I do not accept the exculpatory evidence given by Mr Singh, I have considered the prospect that Ms Kaur could have been the aggressor and Mr Singh’s conduct defensive,’ she wrote.
‘While self defense was not advanced by Mr Singh, I have considered all possible defenses in assessing whether the evidence in this case is capable of raising a reasonable doubt about his guilt. Self defense requires clarity as to the accused’s purpose, which is not at all present here.’
The couple were living in the basement suite of this $1.3 million mansion at the time of the murder. A neighbor found Kaur lying on the floor in the doorway with a ‘large pool of blood around her,’ the trial heard
Justice Ormiston further argued that in case of self defense, the defendant’s conduct must be ‘reasonable in the circumstances.’
‘When it comes to reasonableness, even if I were to accept Mr Singh’s version of events, which I do not, Mr Singh disarmed Ms Kaur once without incident,’ she wrote.
‘When he says she retrieved the knife a second time, he remembers that he was able to redirect the knife to Ms Kaur.’
The judge concluded: ‘The Crown evidence establishes that he then proceeded to stab her repeatedly. There is no reasonable basis on which Mr. Singh could be found to have acted in self defense on these facts.’
He is due back in court in October to confirm completion of a psychiatric assessment, the BC Prosecution Service told CTV News.
A date for Singh’s sentencing has not yet been set.
Singh moved to Canada from India on March 9, 2024, the judge’s decision said.
His wife had relocated to the country in 2022 to assist their daughter who was attending university there.
Singh financially assisted his wife’s move, including using funds borrowed from a friend, the filing said.
After Kaur relocated, Singh applied to join her but his application was denied. He then applied a second time and was granted permission to come to Canada.
‘Ms Kaur is the one who submitted the paperwork to request Mr Singh’s visa,’ the judge wrote, noting that ‘he was staying with Ms Kaur in her basement suite in Abbotsford.’
