Kanwarpal Singh, who stalked and harassed Auckland law student Zana Yaqubi for years before brutally killing her, has been denied an appeal to reduce his prison sentence.
Singh, 22, fatally stabbed the 21-year-old in an alleyway near her Massey home in December 2022, after months of threats, intimidation, and obsessive behaviour. Despite Zana repeatedly pleading with him to stop and even reporting him to police, Singh continued to harass her — once telling her, “I will never let you win.”
In a Court of Appeal decision released today, judges rejected Singh’s request to have his sentence reviewed, despite a new psychological report describing him as “severely personality disordered”.
A Promising Life Cut Short
Born in Afghanistan, Farzana (“Zana”) Yaqubi came to New Zealand as a toddler with her family, joining her father — one of the Tampa refugees given safe haven after fleeing conflict.
“She flourished in New Zealand,” Justice David Johnstone said at Singh’s sentencing in the High Court in 2023. “She was smart, independent, and driven. She should have had a rich and fulfilling life ahead of her.”
At the time of her death, Zana had just completed her third year of law studies at Auckland University of Technology (AUT) and worked part-time at an outlet store in Westgate.
Years of Stalking and Threats
Singh first met Yaqubi in Auckland and began contacting her obsessively through social media. When she blocked him, he created new accounts to reach her. His messages grew increasingly threatening — he vowed to kidnap her and “give her 365 days to love me,” referencing a plot from the Netflix film 365 Days.
He also threatened to throw acid on her face.
In early December 2022, after seeing Singh follow her at a shopping mall, Zana sought help from a security guard and later went to police with screenshots of his threatening messages. An Independent Police Conduct Authority report later found that police systems for logging stalking complaints were “not fit for purpose” and failed to connect her report to another woman’s similar complaint about Singh.
The Fatal Attack
On the evening of December 19, 2022, Zana caught a bus home from work and began walking along an alley near her Massey home. Singh ambushed her with a large knife.
She tried to call police, but Singh stabbed her 12 times in the chest and stomach — four of the wounds were individually fatal. Police later found that Singh had been planning her murder for months.
The Appeal Rejected
In his appeal, Singh’s lawyers presented a new psychological report describing him as narcissistic, obsessional, and antisocial. The report said he possibly suffered from erotomania, a delusional belief that someone loves you when they clearly do not.
However, the Court of Appeal said the report only reinforced Singh’s dangerous personality and lack of empathy.
“We do not accept that the report identifies any factors which could diminish Mr Singh’s moral culpability,” the judges said. “Indeed, in our view, the report identified factors emphasising the need for accountability and denunciation.”
When asked later about Yaqubi’s death, Singh told a psychologist he was not happy about what happened but felt “no need to feel remorse”.
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