A Malaysian teenager has been sentenced to life in prison in the United Kingdom (UK) after he attacked 2 of his schoolmates with a hammer while they were sleeping in their dormitory at their boarding school. He also used the hammer to attack a teacher.
According to a report by Sky News, 17-year-old Thomas Wei Huang was found guilty of 3 charges of attempted murder following a 10-week trial. He, who will turn 18 in January, was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 12 years before he can be considered for parole.
This all started when Huang decided to attack 2 of his schoolmates, aged 15 and 16, with a hammer while they slept in their dormitory. He had climbed up to their cabin-styled beds and attacked them shortly before 1am on June 9 of last year.
Both victims suffered from fractured skulls, as well as injuries to their ribs, spleen, internal bleeding and a punctured lung.
When a teacher arrived to intervene, Huang attacked the teacher as well.
The teacher, Henry Roffe-Silvester, recalled the incident which led to him taking 6 blows to the head.
He had been asleep in his own quarters when he was awoken by noises coming from the boarding house. Having gone to investigate, he saw a silhouette standing in the room, who then turned and repeatedly hit him over the head with a hammer.
“Physically, I stumbled backwards into the corridor. There was a second blow. I can’t remember if it was before I stumbled back. That’s a little bit hazy for me,” he said.
Another student heard the commotion and called the police, believing there was an intruder. The 2 victims were later discovered in their beds.
Huang had admitted to carrying out the attacks but said that he was sleepwalking. He then pleaded not guilty on the basis of insanity.
However, the court was told that he had an obsession with the killing of children and hammers, and he apparently kept 3 claw hammers by his bedside for “protection” from the “zombie apocalypse”.
“You planned your offences and used hammers you had bought as weapons,” – Judge Mrs Justice Cutts told Huang, adding that he is an “intelligent boy” who “knew full well if you hit the boys multiple times with the hammers, they would die”.
Huang, who comes from a wealthy family, was sentenced to life in prison due to the significant risk he posed to the public as he could repeat his attack.
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