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Britain's Most Evil Killers S10E01 (21st October 2025)
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00:00In January 2009, a man in West London made a panicked 999 call.
00:19Someone's appointed me now, too.
00:24You think your ex-girlfriend's done it?
00:26Yeah.
00:26Hours later, the caller Lucky Chima was dead.
00:32Alarm bells rang for medics who suspected foul play.
00:37People don't just die not from these symptoms,
00:41and it was something that the nurses and doctors had never seen before.
00:46In a highly unusual investigation, detectives uncovered a love triangle
00:51as toxic as the poison that had killed Lucky Chima.
00:55Lucky's former lover, Lakvya, couldn't bear the thought that he was going to marry someone else.
01:01She was jealous and obsessively jealous.
01:06In an impotent rage, Lakvya Singh chose a particularly cruel death for the man she claimed to love.
01:14Your mind knows that your body is closing down and collapsing around you,
01:20and you are dying an agonising death.
01:23Devastated at losing her long-time lover, Lakvya Singh planned to stop Lucky Chima finding happiness with anyone else.
01:32She expected to get away with murder, but was finally exposed as one of Britain's most evil killers.
01:39�
01:48OAK
01:51When a previously healthy couple fell dangerously ill
02:08in West London in 2009,
02:11medics knew immediately that something unusual had happened.
02:15We had all these different things that we were considering.
02:18Is it poisoning? Is it contamination within the food chain?
02:25The police had to go to DEFRA, the Health Protection Agency,
02:29and even the botanists at Kew Gardens.
02:33Eventually, the clues led to a conclusion.
02:36The couple had been poisoned with Indian aconite,
02:39a perennial plant which is the source
02:41of one of nature's most dangerous poisons.
02:44It's an exceptionally unusual poison in this country.
02:48The last case of aconite poisoning was in 1882, never since.
02:54And poisoning, in any event, is pretty unusual in this country,
02:58in homicide cases.
03:00By using this rare toxin,
03:03had Lakvir Singh gambled on getting away with murder?
03:07Until relatively recently, in, say, the last 30 years,
03:11you couldn't analyse for it.
03:14So, previously, we were very much dependent on, one,
03:19high concentration being present,
03:22real knowledge that it was that particular one,
03:25so you knew what you were looking for when you started out.
03:29So, those advances enable us now
03:32to identify toxins at a much, much lower concentration.
03:37Lakvir Singh had woven what must have seemed like an ingenious plot.
03:44She'd not reckoned on the tenacity of London's homicide detectives.
03:51This killer story begins in the Punjab region
03:55of northwestern India in October 1964.
04:01We don't know a lot about her background.
04:03She came to this country,
04:04and in July 1985, Lakvir had an arranged marriage
04:10and she and her husband lived in Southall.
04:16Singh worked for a catering company in Heathrow,
04:20which was very close to Southall
04:22and was a major local business.
04:26The couple had three children together,
04:29but I don't think it was a particularly happy marriage.
04:32Singh was caring for her husband because he had cancer,
04:37and on occasions, he actually went to India for treatment.
04:45In 1993, a new lodger brought some light
04:49into 28-year-old Lakvir Singh's otherwise difficult life.
04:54Lakfinder Chima was known as Lucky.
04:56That was his nickname.
04:58His sister was married to Singh's brother.
05:02Lucky Chima arrived in England in his early 20s.
05:07At that point, he was already married.
05:10His marriage had failed,
05:11and so suddenly he needed somewhere to stay.
05:15And he moved in with Lakvir Singh and her husband
05:18as their tenant, as a lodger in their house in Southall.
05:26Lucky worked for Rent-A-Kill,
05:27and he was described as a model work colleague.
05:32His colleagues thought he was always smiling,
05:34he was well-known, he was a popular bloke to work with.
05:3723-year-old Lucky Chima's charms
05:40were not lost on his new landlady, Lakvir Singh.
05:44From the moment he arrived,
05:48our understanding was that he formed a sexual relationship with Singh
05:52and that carried on for at least 15 years.
05:58He was quite charming, quite charismatic.
06:01She was probably quite vulnerable in a lot of ways.
06:04You could see how that situation might happen.
06:10Clearly, Lakvir had very, very strong feelings for Lucky.
06:16And I think Lucky had probably convinced her
06:19that they would probably have a future together.
06:24It was a dangerous game to play
06:26in the close-knit West London community.
06:28I'm sure Singh felt trapped
06:31in this unhappy marriage with her husband
06:34when Lucky was really the light of her life
06:37and really the only person she really loved.
06:45Around 2006, Lucky moved into his own home
06:49six miles from Southall.
06:52He bought a four-bedroom property in Feltham.
06:55He occupied the ground floor of that house
07:00and rented out the other rooms,
07:03the upstairs rooms to tenants.
07:05And they had shared facilities,
07:08so they all shared the facilities of the kitchen.
07:12Lucky's tenants soon became familiar
07:14with his attentive friend, Lakvir Singh.
07:20To all intents and purposes,
07:21it was like as if they were married
07:23because she would turn up and do all of the cooking
07:25and the washing and the tidying up.
07:26And I suspect that when she did that at Lucky's home,
07:29she'd go and do the same thing at her home.
07:36Lucky sent to Lakvir on her birthday in October 2008,
07:40you be my loved and I will give you all my love.
07:46The affair had, by this time,
07:49become an open secret among Lakvir Singh
07:51and Lucky Chima's loved ones.
07:55It was a very unhappy relationship culturally,
07:59both for her family and for his family.
08:03In the autumn of 2008,
08:0615 years into their illicit affair,
08:08this uneasy equilibrium was shattered
08:11when 39-year-old Lucky began looking to the future.
08:16On the 18th of October 2008,
08:18Lucky Chima met a young woman
08:20at a local Sikh temple in Southall.
08:25Gurjit had come to the United Kingdom in 2008.
08:29She came here illegally,
08:31got a false passport.
08:34Gurjit was much younger than Lucky.
08:36She was 21 years old.
08:37She was introduced to Lucky
08:45with a view to them being married.
08:53And they plainly got on.
08:59They came quickly, I believe,
09:02to love each other.
09:03They appeared very happy together.
09:04News of the courting couple's plans
09:09came as a shock to Lakvir Singh.
09:12By the 2nd of November 2008,
09:16so really just within a few weeks
09:17of their first meeting,
09:19their engagement was announced.
09:24Lucky told Singh
09:25that he wanted to start a relationship
09:27with someone else and have children.
09:31Singh reacted with absolute fury.
09:34To this devastating blow to her plans,
09:37she started texting Lucky
09:38with threatening messages,
09:40saying that she was going to come
09:43and burn his house down.
09:46She was absolutely furious
09:47by what she clearly saw
09:49was absolute betrayal.
09:51She was obviously devastated,
09:54angry, hurt,
09:55sort of a mixture of pleading with him
09:57to come back
09:58and being abusive to him around,
10:00how could you treat me like this?
10:02Lucky Chima did not make a clean break
10:06with his long-term lover.
10:08Lucky, in fact,
10:09had kept Singh's hopes up.
10:12He even sent her a text
10:13saying,
10:14I live for the moment
10:15where we can see each other in a dream.
10:18While telling Gurjeet
10:19that his affair with Singh
10:21had been over for years,
10:23Lucky continued to see
10:24his secret lover.
10:26Even though he was saying
10:27he wanted to form a relationship
10:29with Gurjeet,
10:30he was still having
10:30a sexual relationship
10:31with Singh at the same time.
10:33And he was expressing
10:34his love for her
10:35and that the two of them
10:36would always be together.
10:40In November 2008,
10:43as Lucky and Gurjeet
10:44made plans,
10:45Lakvir Singh attended
10:47a family event in India.
10:49There she found a solution
10:50to her situation,
10:52one that she hoped
10:53would blow any wedding plans
10:55out of the water.
11:08In late November 2008,
11:1144-year-old Lakvir Singh
11:13returned to the UK from India,
11:16determined to drive a wedge
11:18between 39-year-old Lucky Chima
11:20and his new fiancée, Gurjeet.
11:23Singh was saying to him,
11:25look, you don't really want
11:26to be going out
11:26with this woman
11:27because she's illegal
11:29in the country
11:30and all she basically wants
11:32is a passport.
11:33Singh's attempts
11:34to sour the relationship
11:36fell on deaf ears.
11:38In early December,
11:40Gurjeet and Lucky
11:41give details of
11:44when they're going
11:44to get married,
11:45the following February.
11:50To add insult to injury,
11:53Lucky and Gurjeet decided
11:56to get married
11:57on Valentine's Day 2009,
12:00which simply rubbed salt
12:02into the wounds
12:03of Lakvir Singh.
12:09A few days after announcing
12:11their wedding plans,
12:13Lucky fell gravely ill.
12:16Lucky had had a period
12:18of sickness
12:19that had come on
12:22quite quickly,
12:23hadn't been fully diagnosed,
12:26but he had had several days
12:28of really quite extreme,
12:31what was probably
12:32put down to
12:33either food poisoning
12:35or gastroenteritis.
12:37Singh attends almost every day
12:40to visit him in hospital.
12:42And during that time,
12:44he's still trying to convince him
12:45that he shouldn't get married
12:47to Gurjeet.
12:50I think Gurjeet realised
12:52that the relationship
12:53with Singh
12:54was still continuing.
12:56So she took Singh aside
12:58to try and warn her off
13:00and basically told her,
13:02look, forget it.
13:03He's my man now.
13:08In response,
13:09Singh dropped a bombshell
13:11that she hoped
13:11might put 21-year-old Gurjeet
13:14off for good.
13:16She told Gurjeet
13:17she'd become pregnant
13:18on at least two occasions
13:20and Lucky apparently
13:22wanted her to have abortions.
13:25She was trying everything
13:27to claw the relationship back,
13:28panicking in this state of chaos.
13:34She even threw in threats,
13:36serious threats,
13:37threats of arson,
13:39threats of harm to him.
13:40But this is not unusual
13:43in a situation like this
13:45where the person
13:46is actually escalating
13:48and becoming more
13:49and more dangerous.
13:52Lucky spent two or three days
13:53in the hospital
13:54feeling pretty ill
13:55but thought perhaps
13:57nothing of it at the time,
13:58perhaps food poisoning.
14:03After he's released
14:04from hospital,
14:05we know that this is
14:07almost close to Christmas
14:08and you'd have thought
14:08that he would be
14:09with Gurjeet
14:10during this period
14:11but completely the opposite.
14:13He spends the entire Christmas
14:15with Singh.
14:17It just goes to show you
14:18the level of control
14:19to some degree
14:20that Singh had
14:21over Lucky.
14:23Despite his mixed messages,
14:25Lucky's wedding planning
14:27continued
14:27and in January 2009,
14:30Gurjeet started spending
14:32the odd night with him
14:33at his home
14:34in Feltham.
14:35When you got
14:36to January 2009,
14:38his attitude
14:39to Lakvir changed.
14:42Notably,
14:42he stopped sleeping
14:43with her.
14:48On the 27th of January,
14:51with less than three weeks
14:52to go until their marriage,
14:54Lucky and Gurjeet
14:55shared a meal
14:56in the kitchen
14:57of Lucky's home.
14:58Gurjeet and Lucky
15:03were discussing
15:05their wedding plans.
15:06But the couple
15:07would never get
15:08to share their vows.
15:10Just a few hours later,
15:12Gurjeet was seriously ill
15:13and Lucky Chima
15:15was dead.
15:16Lucky had presented himself
15:18at the hospital
15:19along with Gurjeet.
15:22Gurjeet was immediately
15:23put into an induced coma
15:25because she was so ill.
15:27The doctors tried
15:28to revive Lucky,
15:30but he died
15:31at about half past two
15:32in the morning.
15:34Medics had no idea
15:35what had struck down
15:37the previously healthy couple,
15:39but in his final breaths,
15:41Lucky Chima
15:42had given them
15:43a major clue.
15:45In the hour
15:46that he was alive,
15:47between arriving
15:48at the hospital
15:48and he's finally dying,
15:51Lucky was able
15:52to whisper to doctors,
15:54it was my ex-girlfriend.
16:02So on the 28th of January,
16:042009,
16:05the police were alerted
16:07by Middlesex Hospital
16:09of a very suspicious incident
16:12whereby relatively healthy male
16:14had died
16:15with very shocking
16:17and sudden symptoms.
16:21DCI Howard Groves
16:23led the Metropolitan Police
16:24homicide team
16:25that took the call
16:27from West Middlesex Hospital.
16:29My team,
16:30at that point,
16:30decided that we would
16:31treat it as a murder investigation
16:33and then that would allow us
16:36to establish the facts.
16:40The homicide command
16:42would have sent
16:43an initial response team
16:45to attend the hospital,
16:47obviously to speak
16:47to the doctors concerned.
16:50The sister and nephews
16:51of the deceased
16:52had actually taken him
16:53to hospital,
16:54so they were key witnesses
16:56who could explain
16:57to the hospital
16:58and us
16:59exactly what had been happening.
17:01The team also reviewed
17:03a 999 call
17:05made by Lucky Chima
17:06the previous evening.
17:08OK,
17:09is your girlfriend conscious?
17:11Yes.
17:13Is she awake?
17:14Yeah,
17:14same like me.
17:18But we are very worried
17:19then because...
17:20OK,
17:20so what makes you think
17:21somebody poisoned your food?
17:25Because
17:25she got my ex-girlfriend.
17:28She came to the lake
17:28in the water.
17:30You think your ex-girlfriend's
17:32done it?
17:34Yes.
17:35Detectives looked
17:43into the meal
17:44the couple
17:44had been sharing
17:45shortly before Lucky
17:47made the call.
17:50It was actually
17:51a curry
17:52that Gergie
17:53had made
17:54and they'd eaten
17:57that meal
17:57the night before
17:58where there was
17:59quite a significant
18:00amount of leftovers
18:01which had been put
18:02into a Tupperware pot
18:03and which they had put
18:05on Lucky's shelf
18:06in the fridge.
18:10Gergie hadn't been well
18:12and she didn't really
18:13want to eat very much.
18:14Lucky, on the other hand,
18:15had been working hard
18:16and was ravenous.
18:19He ate
18:20two portions
18:21of the curry
18:22while she ate
18:23very little.
18:25It was a decision
18:25that was to cost him
18:26his life.
18:31About an hour,
18:33hour and a half
18:33after eating
18:34their dinner
18:35he started feeling
18:37extremely unwell.
18:41He had violent
18:42vomiting.
18:43He described
18:44how his sight
18:45was going.
18:45Everything became dark.
18:47He couldn't feel
18:48his hands,
18:49his legs.
18:49He said he couldn't
18:50even feel his tongue
18:51when he was holding it
18:52and he couldn't
18:53stand up straight.
18:55he had to support himself.
18:57This was very,
18:59very frightening.
19:01He deteriorated quickly
19:03and was in
19:05very significant pain.
19:09Gergie decided
19:10that she was going
19:11to have a shower
19:11and by the time
19:13she came back down
19:14his condition
19:16had worsened
19:17and now she was
19:18beginning to feel
19:19similar symptoms.
19:23They called 999
19:24the operator
19:26speaks to Lucky
19:27and asks whether
19:28or not he had
19:29got food poisoning
19:30and he said
19:31no,
19:31I have been poisoned.
19:33Women put poison
19:34in our food.
19:37Why would someone
19:38put poison
19:39in your food?
19:42Clearly he
19:43was acutely aware
19:45that something
19:46quite serious
19:47had probably happened
19:48to both of them.
19:50He also phoned
19:51his sister
19:52who lived
19:53who lived very close by
19:54because he was
19:56really panicking.
19:59When the family
20:00came around
20:01in fact
20:01before the emergency
20:03services were
20:04due to be there
20:05he was carried out
20:08and it was him
20:08being taken
20:09to a car
20:10of a nephew
20:11that was just
20:13caught on CCTV.
20:14he was obviously
20:17in really
20:18significant distress
20:19in very significant pain
20:22in and out
20:23of consciousness.
20:26Gugit was also ill.
20:27She herself
20:28has described
20:29how she started
20:30her eyes started
20:31to go completely
20:32her tummy was hurting
20:34she couldn't stand
20:35up properly
20:36and she too
20:37has bundled
20:38into the car
20:38to take her off
20:39to hospital
20:40and she described
20:42how she was
20:44trying to reach
20:44out her hand
20:45to hold
20:46Lucky's hand
20:46and she couldn't
20:47move her hands
20:48because of the
20:49paralysis.
20:52The car
20:53taking Lucky
20:54screeched to a halt
20:55outside West Middlesex
20:56hospital
20:57and Lucky
20:58was rushed inside
20:59but there was
21:01nothing they can do
21:02and within an hour
21:05of arriving
21:06at the hospital
21:06Lucky was dead.
21:07Gugit by now
21:10was also
21:12in a very
21:13very poorly condition
21:14and she was actually
21:15placed into a coma.
21:20With one patient
21:22dead
21:22and another's
21:23life in the balance
21:24medics faced
21:25a race against time
21:26to discover
21:27what deadly illness
21:29had befallen
21:29the betrothed couple.
21:31She may have
21:32lost her fiancé
21:33but could
21:33Gugit's life
21:35be saved?
21:37On the 28th
21:48of January
21:492009
21:50the Met Police's
21:52homicide unit
21:53launched an investigation
21:54into the highly
21:56unusual death
21:57of Lakvinda Lucky
21:58Chima
21:58who died in agony
22:00at a West London
22:01hospital.
22:02When Lucky
22:05arrived at the hospital
22:06he was adamant
22:07that he had
22:07been poisoned.
22:10I took the view
22:11that we had to
22:13treat it
22:13as if
22:14it was a poisoning.
22:15We couldn't
22:16say to ourselves
22:16we'll wait
22:17for the post-mortem
22:18and see what
22:18happens next.
22:21We rarely dealt
22:23with cases
22:24of poisoning.
22:25Our
22:26general day-to-day
22:27murders
22:28would be
22:28shootings,
22:30stabbings,
22:31gangland-type
22:32killings.
22:33So this
22:33really stood
22:34out
22:35as an
22:36unusual case
22:37and certainly
22:38one that I had
22:39never dealt
22:39with in the past.
22:41Unused
22:42to treating
22:42poisoning
22:43of this
22:43intensity
22:44medics
22:45wondered
22:45if they
22:46were dealing
22:46with some
22:47kind of
22:47biological
22:48or chemical
22:49weapon.
22:50There were
22:52a lot of
22:53concerns that
22:53there was
22:54potentially
22:54cyanide
22:55poisoning
22:56involved.
22:57So it was
22:57treated
22:58incredibly
22:58seriously
22:59and in
22:59terms of
23:00the deceased
23:01body
23:01that was
23:02put into
23:02a sealed
23:03room
23:03and
23:04everyone
23:04had to
23:05wear
23:05specialist
23:06protective
23:07equipment,
23:08specialist
23:09breathing
23:09equipment
23:09because
23:10obviously
23:10if it
23:10had been
23:11cyanide
23:11that is
23:12incredibly
23:13dangerous.
23:14While murder
23:20was one
23:21scenario
23:21for
23:22detectives
23:22to consider
23:23they also
23:24had to
23:24find out
23:25if there
23:25was another
23:26explanation
23:27contamination
23:28in the
23:29food chain
23:29that could
23:30have caused
23:31Lucky's
23:31death
23:31and which
23:32might strike
23:33another
23:33innocent
23:34victim
23:34at any
23:35moment.
23:36We decided
23:37to contact
23:37the Department
23:38of Environmental
23:39Food
23:40and Rural
23:41Affairs
23:41DEFRA
23:42because
23:44they have
23:45the knowledge
23:46and expertise
23:46to look at
23:47food and
23:48its production
23:48and they
23:49said to
23:49us that
23:50they didn't
23:50have any
23:51records
23:52of anyone
23:53presenting
23:54themselves to
23:54the hospitals
23:55throughout the
23:55UK in
23:56the last
23:5772 hours
23:58with any
23:58similar
23:58symptoms.
24:01With the
24:02ball back
24:02in their
24:03court,
24:04the police
24:04faced the
24:05urgent
24:05challenge
24:06of identifying
24:06what the
24:07poison could
24:08be.
24:09As
24:09Gajit
24:10continued
24:10fighting for
24:11her life,
24:12knowledge of
24:13the substance
24:13could help
24:14the medics
24:15trying to
24:16save her.
24:17The agency
24:18that we were
24:19advised to
24:19contact was
24:20the Health
24:20Protection
24:21Agency.
24:22They had
24:22the necessary
24:23expertise to
24:25be able to
24:25attend Lucky's
24:26home in
24:27hazmat suits
24:28and they
24:29retrieved the
24:30Tupperware
24:31that the
24:32remains of
24:33some of the
24:33meal that was
24:33consumed.
24:35While analysis
24:36began on the
24:37remnants of
24:38the curry,
24:39police officers
24:40had to act on
24:41Lucky
24:41Cheema's
24:41suspicions
24:42about his
24:43former lover
24:44Lakvir Singh.
24:46On Wednesday
24:46the 28th,
24:47Singh was
24:47arrested.
24:49She was
24:50arrested on
24:51suspicion of
24:52the murder
24:52of Lucky
24:53and also at
24:54that point
24:55the attempted
24:55murder of
24:57Gajit.
24:59When the
25:00police arrived
25:01at Singh's
25:01house, far
25:02from being
25:03angry or
25:04involved or
25:05emotional,
25:07she was very
25:07calm and
25:08collected,
25:09made out that
25:10she had no
25:11idea what
25:11they were
25:12there for.
25:14Clearly, by
25:15this stage,
25:15Singh knew
25:16that Lucky
25:17was dead.
25:20This was the
25:20man she had
25:21loved, the
25:22one love in
25:23her life and
25:24had been in
25:24a relationship
25:25for 16 years.
25:27And here she
25:27was giving a
25:28very calm,
25:29composed response
25:31to the arrival
25:32of the police
25:32and for the
25:33fact that she
25:33was being
25:33arrested.
25:34Lakvir Singh
25:39was not the
25:40only person
25:40of interest
25:41for police.
25:43Another
25:43relative, a
25:44man with
25:44ties to both
25:45Singh and
25:46Lucky, was
25:47also taken
25:48in for
25:48questioning.
25:50On the
25:51day of the
25:52poisoning of
25:53Gurjit and
25:54Lucky, a
25:57family member
25:58had actually
25:59attended
25:59Lucky's
26:00address and
26:01spoken to
26:01Gurjit.
26:04He had
26:05threatened
26:05Lucky that
26:07very day, the
26:09shame he was
26:10bringing on the
26:11wider family.
26:13But even as
26:14police questioned
26:15this man, their
26:16colleagues were
26:17uncovering evidence
26:18that he was not
26:19the likely
26:20assailant.
26:22At the time of
26:23Singh's arrest, a
26:24search was conducted
26:25at her address and
26:27the officers recovered
26:28from a coat that
26:29she had hanging
26:30over the
26:31banister, a
26:32brown substance,
26:32and not only
26:34did they find a
26:35brown substance in
26:36a plastic bag, they
26:37also found something
26:38similar in a
26:39handbag.
26:40Suspecting this
26:41unknown substance
26:42could be linked
26:43with Lucky's
26:44death and
26:45Gurjit's perilous
26:46condition, it was
26:47imperative detectives
26:49find out what it
26:50was.
26:52The first thing
26:53that the police did
26:54was to confront
26:55Singh and say,
26:57what is this
26:57brown powder?
26:58and she acted
26:59completely nonchalantly
27:00and said, oh,
27:01that's nothing, that's
27:02a bit of herbal stuff
27:03that I have for a
27:04neck rash.
27:06My colleagues were
27:07not happy with that
27:09and actually explained
27:10and said, look,
27:10someone has died and
27:11there's someone very
27:12seriously ill in
27:14hospital.
27:16If the doctors knew
27:18exactly what was in
27:19that bag, then they
27:21could have come up
27:22with a solution as to
27:22how they were going
27:23to treat Gurjit.
27:26We knew more than
27:27likely it was a
27:28poison, but there
27:29are hundreds and
27:30thousands of different
27:31poisons, but she
27:32wouldn't tell us
27:33exactly what it was.
27:34It's not clear
27:36whether Singh intended
27:38Gurjit to die as
27:40well, and it's quite
27:41possible that she saw
27:43her as irrelevant and
27:45that if she does, it's
27:46all good, if she
27:47doesn't, it doesn't
27:47matter because he'll be
27:48dead anyway and she
27:49can't have him.
27:53Still none the wiser,
27:56investigators hope
27:57Lucky Cheema's
27:58post-mortem might
28:00reveal some answers
28:01about what had
28:02killed him.
28:03I remember
28:04personally being at
28:05the post-mortem that
28:07was conducted by a
28:08very eminent
28:09pathologist and I
28:10remember that he
28:11received sort of
28:13sealed instructions,
28:15I think from
28:15something like
28:16Portland Down, of
28:18how to deal with
28:19the potential cyanide
28:19poisoning and we all
28:21had to wear sort of
28:22chemical protective
28:24overalls, breathing
28:25apparatus, it's the
28:27only time that I've
28:28ever had to do that
28:29at a post-mortem.
28:31There were multiple
28:32samples taken from
28:34Lucky's body and that
28:36would have included
28:37stomach contents,
28:38blood, urine, hair,
28:41everything that could
28:42possibly be tested to
28:45give an indication of
28:46what he had ingested
28:48and what had caused
28:49his death.
28:50The post-mortem was
28:51inconclusive.
28:53While detectives
28:54awaited the results of
28:55toxicology tests on
28:57Lucky's blood and
28:58stomach contents, time
29:00was running out to hold
29:02Lakvir Singh on suspicion
29:03of Lucky's murder.
29:05They needed to establish a
29:07link between the spurned
29:09lover and Lucky's
29:10sudden illness.
29:12The police were able to
29:14put together some of the
29:15events leading up to his
29:17death.
29:17The tenants living in
29:19Lucky's home were key
29:20witnesses to the events
29:22of that day.
29:23On the 27th of January,
29:25around about 10.30 in the
29:27morning, Singh went to
29:29Lucky's house.
29:32She knocked on the door
29:33and she was allowed entry by
29:36one of the other tenants who
29:38lived in one of the upstairs
29:39bedrooms.
29:40There was nothing unusual
29:42about this whatsoever.
29:44She was a regular visitor to
29:46the house.
29:49Gurjit was actually staying at
29:51Lucky's home at that point
29:52and she wasn't feeling well and
29:54had spent most of the day
29:56sleeping.
29:59The tenants that were in the
30:01address were all sitting in the
30:02kitchen chatting.
30:04Singh went straight to the
30:06fridge, opened the door and
30:07with her back to them, she took
30:08out an item from the fridge.
30:11They couldn't see what she was
30:13doing.
30:15She knew about Lucky's
30:17habits, whereabouts in the
30:20address he lived, which part of
30:22the refrigerator he used for his
30:25food.
30:28She, of all people, would have
30:30known where the curry to be
30:33consumed by him was going to be
30:35in the fridge.
30:38She then closed it up and put it
30:39back in the fridge, had a
30:41little, I had a little chat with
30:42them and then left.
30:44Now for the tenants, that didn't
30:46raise any alarms.
30:49We know that when Lucky came
30:51home and he was told that she had
30:52turned up, he actually did
30:54something which was quite strange.
30:56He changed the locks on the back
30:57door and the front door, which
30:58would indicate he didn't want her
31:00there.
31:02At that point, I think Lucky must
31:05have been feeling actually very,
31:08very uneasy about the relationship
31:10and how it had broken down and how
31:13it was actually affecting Singh.
31:16Having decided to get the locks
31:18changed, he phoned Singh in a fury to
31:21demand an answer to, what were you
31:23doing in my house?
31:25And she just told him, we're coming
31:27to get you.
31:29And me and five other men, which of
31:32course only added to the sense of
31:35fear and trepidation that Lucky had.
31:38What on earth was Singh going to do
31:39next?
31:42Singh made some very serious threats
31:45and I think Lucky was probably stuck
31:47between being really quite frightened of
31:50her and what she might do, but also
31:55how was he going to tell anyone?
31:57How was he actually going to deal with
31:59this?
32:01Detectives had quickly built a picture of
32:03an obsessive, threatening ex who'd been
32:06seen acting oddly in Lucky Chima's home
32:09the day he and Gajit mysteriously fell
32:12ill.
32:13But they still didn't know for sure that
32:15they'd been poisoned or indeed, what
32:18with?
32:18It was a circumstantial case.
32:22We didn't have an eyewitness here.
32:24After two days, Gajit began to show
32:27signs of recovery.
32:28Her testimony would help police build a
32:31better picture of the toxic love
32:33triangle.
32:34But could the police really prove beyond
32:36reasonable doubt that mother of three
32:39Lakvir Singh was a cold-blooded killer?
32:48In January 2009, detectives in West
32:55London faced the uphill struggle of proving
32:58that 44-year-old Lakvir Singh had
33:01deliberately poisoned her former lover, Lucky
33:04Chima, and his fiancée, Gajit.
33:13By the 31st of January, the detectives felt
33:17they had enough circumstantial evidence
33:19to charge Lakvir with the murder of Lucky
33:21and the attempted murder of Gajit.
33:24But they still didn't know what precisely
33:26the poison was that she'd used.
33:30They needed to work out what Lucky had been
33:33poisoned with to establish that link between
33:38the substances they had found and the
33:41suspect.
33:42Detectives reached out to a poisons expert
33:48to find out what substance could have caused
33:51Lucky's devastating symptoms.
33:55The poisons experts explained to the
33:57detectives, finally, that it was likely that
34:01Lucky and Gajit had been poisoned with
34:03aconite, sometimes known as wolf's bane,
34:06the queen of poisons.
34:07It's an exceptionally unusual poison in this country.
34:13The last case of aconite poisoning was in 1882,
34:17never since.
34:19The police turned to Professor Monique Simmons,
34:22a researcher and botanist with expertise in
34:25identifying plant compounds.
34:28They sometimes come to Q because of the
34:31collections at Q, the specimen, living specimens
34:34we have, but also the estimated 8 million
34:37in our herbarium collection.
34:39And we were aware that it could be, therefore,
34:43aconitum because of the symptoms.
34:45So we asked to hear a little bit more about the
34:47symptoms.
34:48Again, we're not medics, but we have some of
34:50that knowledge about what potentially the
34:53toxins can be.
34:54Aconitum has an effect on the organs breaking down.
34:59The victim is very much, you know, aware of what
35:01is happening.
35:02They can't breathe and things like that.
35:05Professor Simmons was given samples of all of the
35:08evidence the police had gathered.
35:10If you look then at the samples we've been given,
35:15some material that has come from Mrs. Singh's pocket,
35:21some from the remains of the curry, etc.,
35:25and then from samples from the victim's stomach and blood.
35:32We make an extract.
35:33So now we've got samples that we can inject into the
35:40equipment that we use.
35:45And that will help analyse that extract.
35:49So we get what we term kind of a chemical fingerprint.
35:53It's not the same as a DNA fingerprint, but in our terms,
35:56it enables us to identify the different compounds that are in
36:02that extract that we've made.
36:04Analysis of Lucky's blood and stomach contents found that not
36:09only was it chemically the same as the toxins found in the
36:12samples of leftover curry in his fridge, it was also the same as
36:17the powder found in Lakvir Singh's handbag and coat pocket.
36:22But what was puzzling was that it didn't match the profile of
36:26aconite commonly found in the UK.
36:29And then that's where we heard a little bit more about the case of
36:32this is a lady who went to India.
36:34OK, why don't you think?
36:36Let's look at a species then, Ferox, from India.
36:41And then you get slightly different chemistry.
36:44And then, wow, the chemistry meets what we would expect.
36:48Professor Simmons was able to say conclusively that the substance
36:58was a match for Indian aconite.
37:01Pieces of the jigsaw were finally falling into place in the case
37:05against Lakvir Singh, who'd visited her native India around the time
37:10Lucky's engagement was announced.
37:12It was several weeks before the incident that led to death.
37:17Where exactly she went, we don't know.
37:20But the fact is, there are marketplaces in that part of India,
37:25in northern India, just south of the Himalayas,
37:28where you can buy almost anything.
37:31So we took the view from an evidential standpoint that we say
37:35that that's where she got the item from.
37:39Lucky had been hospitalised with a stomach complaint
37:43just days after Singh had returned.
37:45But on that occasion, he'd pulled through.
37:49Detectives now suspected this had been Singh's first attempt
37:53on Lucky's life.
37:55As her trial date approached,
37:57Lakvir Singh continued to deny the charges against her.
38:0112 months after Lucky's death,
38:04the trial opened at the Old Bailey in January 2010.
38:08Once I found out the background to this case,
38:12then this was a date in my diary that was ringed in red.
38:17This was going to be a huge case.
38:20Singh faced charges of murdering Lucky,
38:23as well as attempting to murder Gurjeet.
38:26She also faced an attempted murder charge
38:29for the incident where Lucky had fallen ill
38:32a month or so before he died.
38:35The opening statement, opening speech of a prosecutor,
38:40is a very important tool, in a way,
38:43because it's how the jury first get introduced to the case.
38:47In a way, I had an advantage,
38:49because it was a fascinating case.
38:54I was able to present the reality
38:57of a woman who just couldn't take it
39:01that her lover, who she was still in love with
39:04or maybe even obsessed by,
39:06had moved from his affections from her
39:09to this younger woman,
39:11and she was jealous and obsessively jealous.
39:15There was an element of a physical relationship continuing,
39:23but she could not face the fact of the impending marriage.
39:30She gathered in India the wherewithal
39:35in preparation to kill her former lover.
39:41Edward Brown K.C. told the jury
39:44about Lucky's mysterious illness in December 2008.
39:50His illness and his visit to the hospital
39:52were after the defendant, Mrs. Singh,
39:55had returned from India.
39:58With Lucky having survived a first attempt on his life,
40:01the prosecution's case was that in late January 2009,
40:06Lakvir Singh laced the curry in his fridge
40:09with a much stronger dose of poison,
40:11enough to end his life.
40:14Gojit, with the assistance of an interpreter,
40:17gave her account of what happened on the day in question.
40:20The Old Bailey is a very intimidating place to be,
40:24and poor Gojit was there.
40:27She'd barely been in this country more than a year or so.
40:30She was giving evidence about the murder of her fiancée,
40:33the person she planned to spend the rest of her life with.
40:36She couldn't speak the language.
40:38She looked very alone and very, very vulnerable.
40:42We know that one of the tenants also gave evidence of Singh
40:46retrieving the Tupperware with the food content in there,
40:49and there were specialists who then gave evidence in relation to aconite
40:53and the symptoms for being poisoned.
40:56Sitting silently in court, occasionally tearful,
41:02Lakvir Singh, through her lawyer, denied the charges against her.
41:06Part of Lakvir's defence when she comes to trial
41:17is that the actual murder wasn't committed by her,
41:20but was committed by a relative of both she and Lucky.
41:23Gojit confirmed on the witness stand
41:26that this man had threatened Lucky on the day he died.
41:30Lakvir also maintained in her own defence
41:32that she couldn't possibly have killed him because she loved him.
41:38When the jury retired to consider their verdict
41:41after the five-week trial,
41:43they deliberated for no fewer than four days,
41:47really quite a long time.
41:53When the jury file back into court with their verdicts,
41:57it's always a very, very tense moment
41:59because literally nobody apart from those 12 people
42:02know what the verdict's going to be.
42:06The jury convicted Mrs. Singh of murder of Lucky.
42:12They were not sure that Mrs. Singh intended to kill Gojit,
42:17but they convicted her of causing her GBH.
42:22They acquitted her of the earlier poisoning, as we presented it,
42:27maybe because the scientific evidence wasn't there.
42:30Singh looked mousy, she looked very sort of inward.
42:36She looked a tiny figure between prison officers.
42:40She looked beaten, she looked subdued.
42:43I think she knew almost from the start
42:45that she was going to be convicted
42:47and that she would have to live with what she's done
42:48for the rest of her life.
42:53Lakvir Singh was sentenced to life
42:55with a minimum term of 23 years in prison.
42:59I recall the judge stating that she hadn't just acted
43:06in an explosive act of revenge,
43:08it was a very cold and calculated murder.
43:11I think she probably was, generally speaking, quite a cold person,
43:18quite an entitled person,
43:21and somebody who felt that she had some kind of right
43:26to control her partners.
43:28UK women's rights charities have found
43:36that more than half of women who kill their partner
43:38do so in response to domestic violence or abuse.
43:44Lakvir Singh falls into a rare category of women
43:47who plan a homicide for another reason entirely,
43:51in her case, rageful revenge.
43:53There's this anger and outrage
43:58at the injustice of you deciding to leave me.
44:03And I do think that in this case,
44:05Singh did think she'd suffered an injustice.
44:08She thought Lucky was going to be with her forever.
44:11And it was terrible that he suddenly decided
44:14to go off and get engaged.
44:18I didn't see a single trace of remorse.
44:21It's virtually impossible to imagine
44:23that she would have any remorse
44:25because this was a planned operation
44:28and it achieved exactly what she wanted,
44:31which was the agonising death of her former lover.
44:41When Lakvir Singh's secret lover
44:44made plans for a future with someone else,
44:47it was more than she could bear.
44:49Unwilling to see Lucky Chima find happiness
44:54and a family with his new fiancée,
44:57Singh set out to end his life,
45:00grievously harming Gurjeet in the process.
45:05For a murder meticulously planned
45:08and ruthlessly executed,
45:11Lakvir Singh will always be remembered
45:13as one of Britain's most evil killers.
45:18The End
45:20The End
45:21The End
45:24The End
45:26The End
45:27The End
45:28Transcription by CastingWords
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