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VICTIM FOUND IN BATHROOM

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Ho Wei Yi was charged on Aug 8, 2009, with killing his father, church pastor Michael Ho Shiong Chun, 58.

The leader of the Chuan Hoe Seventh Day Adventist Church in Yio Chu Kang was found dead in the bathroom of the master bedroom at their McNair Road flat, which had been set on fire by the younger Ho on Aug 5.

The pastor's body was found after the Singapore Civil Defence Force put out the fire, which broke out at about 10pm. He had died from burns on his body and smoke inhalation.

Ho, now 33, was arrested the next day after he was spotted leaving a public toilet on the ground floor of Velocity Shopping Centre at Novena.

RELAPSE

On Aug 8, a district court was told that Ho had a history of mental illness and that he had shown signs of relapse during investigations.

He was remanded at the Changi Medical Centre for psychiatric assessment.

The following year, Ho was deemed unfit to stand trial because he was found to be mentally ill and suffering from schizophrenia.

He was confined at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) at the discretion of the Law Minister while undergoing treatment for his illness.

In an IMH Visitor Board Summary dated Sept 5, 2011, Dr Tejpal Singh noted that Ho's mental state had "improved over the recent months with medication" and that he was fit to plead.

Yesterday, the High Court heard that on the night of the fire, Ho had heard voices coming from the bed in the master bedroom of the family flat at McNair Road.

He then set fire to the flat and padlocked the front gate before fleeing.