A woman surnamed Feng (馮), 48, who had been convicted of killing her male partner when he wanted to end their relationship, yesterday had her 12-year prison sentence upheld by the Taiwan High Court.
The 12-year term was initially handed down by the Keelung District Court, which found Feng guilty of stabbing her partner, surnamed Liu (劉), 61, 26 times with a fruit knife.
The Taiwan High Court also deprived Feng of her civil rights for five years.
The ruling can still be appealed.
During the trial, Feng claimed she had no intention of killing Liu and claimed it was self-defense, saying they were squabbling and Liu had asked her for money and punched her.
The murder occurred at Feng’s residence on April 25, 2015, when Liu visited her and they got into a fight, as Liu had earlier said that he wanted to break off the relationship, while Feng did not want to do so, the court said.
The investigation gathered evidence which indicated that Feng took the knife to attack Liu while he was undressing in the bathroom.
After the initial attack, Liu tried to run away through the kitchen and living room, but Feng chased after Liu and continued to stab him, investigators said.
Liu succumbed to severe bleeding and died inside the residence, they said.
The court cited evidence at the scene, where investigators found blood splattered throughout the bathroom, kitchen and living room, while Feng showed no signs of injury in a medical examination, indicating that she had attacked the victim.
In the indictment, prosecutors also said that Feng had carried out the attack with intention of killing Liu.
They were both about the same height, but Feng had the dominant role in the relationship, as she was more than twice the weight of the victim, prosecutors said.
Friends and family said Liu had always been skinny and not prone to violent outbursts.
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