Greenridge Crescent twin killings

On 21 January 2022, 11-year-old twin brothers Ethan Yap E Chern and Aston Yap Kai Shern, who had both been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and global developmental delay, were killed at a playground and adjoining canal in Greenridge Crescent, Upper Bukit Timah, Singapore. Their father, Xavier Yap Jung Houn, then 48, brought the boys to the playground, an area he often took them to, before leading them one at a time to a nearby canal, where he strangled each boy and submerged their heads in the water. An autopsy conducted by Dr George Paul determined the boys died from strangulation.

According to background reported after his arrest, Yap had grown increasingly concerned about his sons' welfare from 2019–2020 onward, and in December 2021 began harbouring suicidal thoughts, purchasing an ice pick with plans to take his own life. He came to believe his wife had given up on the boys and feared they would be neglected or ostracised after his death, which he cited as his motive for killing them before attempting suicide himself. His suicide attempts, using the ice pick, a tree branch and a rock, were unsuccessful. He then falsely told police he and his sons had been attacked by an unknown assailant, prompting a manhunt, before investigators found inconsistencies in his account and he confessed to the killings.

Yap was arrested and initially charged with murder under Singapore's Penal Code, an offence carrying a mandatory death penalty if convicted. He was charged separately for each son's death, first for Ethan on 24 January 2022, then for Aston on 18 February 2022. In November 2022, Yap changed his legal representation. On 28 February 2023, prosecutors reduced the charges to culpable homicide not amounting to murder (manslaughter under Singapore law) after a psychiatric assessment by Dr Christopher Cheok of the Institute of Mental Health found Yap suffered from major depressive disorder of moderate severity, sufficient to impair his mental responsibility at the time of the killings.

On 15 August 2023, Yap pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter before Justice Vincent Hoong of the High Court. Prosecutors sought 14 to 20 years' imprisonment with consecutive sentences, while the defence sought five years served concurrently. Justice Hoong sentenced Yap to seven years' imprisonment on each count, ordered to run consecutively, totalling 14 years, backdated to his arrest on 22 January 2022. The judge stated that Yap's depression did not excuse his actions and that rehabilitation should not be the primary sentencing consideration, while also finding the sentence should not be "crushing" given Yap's age.

The case drew significant public attention in Singapore, with residents leaving tributes at the canal and an inter-faith prayer session held there attended by a Member of Parliament and local religious leaders. The case was cited by commentators as part of a broader pattern of family-related homicides in Singapore that year, and the disability support agency SG Enable used the case to urge caregivers of children with special needs to seek support.