Man who battered his wife to death with a rounders bat jailed for life

A 79-year-old man has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 15 years after murdering his wife with a rounders bat.

Tarsame Singh was sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court on Wednesday, 1 November after he pleaded guilty to killing his wife, Maya Devi, at their home address in Hornchurch, East London.

On Tuesday, 2 May, Singh walked into Romford police station and told the front desk that he had just killed his wife.

Officers immediately attended the house on Cowdray Way in Elm Park and found 77-year-old Maya unresponsive on the living room floor. The wooden rounders bat was found nearby.

Significant amounts of blood staining was found on the carpet and nearby walls.

Maya was pronounced dead at the scene; a post-mortem examination found the cause of death to be blunt force head injuries.

Singh was charged the next day and remanded into custody.

The couple had been running a post office in the nearby town of Rainham for several years before their recent retirement.

Maya was a frequent visitor to the Havering Asian Social and Welfare Association (HASWA) community center near their home, where she participated in yoga sessions and enjoyed lunches with friends. Nirmala Leal, an outreach worker at HASWA and a close friend, had seen her just a few hours before her tragic death.

Visibly shocked, she said at the time: “I spoke to Maya yesterday afternoon, about 1:30 pm, and she seemed to be in a good mood.

“In fact, she was excited as she was going on holiday next week.

“She had come to the community centre for yoga, which she did every week, and told me that she wouldn’t be in from Wednesday as she was going to Lanzarote for six days with a female friend.

“Maya was such a lovely lady, really warm-hearted. She loved singing as much as yoga and had a smile for everyone.

“I can’t believe this has happened and that she has gone.

“I saw her just a few hours before her death, it doesn’t seem real that I won’t see her again.”

In August 2023, Singh pleaded guilty to his wife’s murder.

On November 1, he was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 15 years.

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Rogers, who led the investigation, said: “This is a tragic case and one which has left the couple’s three children utterly distraught.

“No-one should ever lose their mother in this way and we will continue to think of, and support them, at this difficult time.

“Singh has never admitted what caused him to act in such a violent way that evening but we are pleased he has pleaded guilty and will now face a significant custodial sentence.”