Punjabi man admits to killing girlfriend in Australia

Melbourne, February 8

A 21-year-old man has pleaded guilty to the murder of his former girlfriend and a nursing student from India whose body was found in South Australia in March 2021.

Tarikjot Singh was accused of abducting Jasmeen Kaur, 21, and killing her, before dumping her body in a shallow grave in Flinders Ranges, 430 km from Adelaide, where she was last seen, 9News reported.

Singh's admission came as a shock as he had earlier pleaded not guilty and was due to stand trial.

However, on Tuesday, he changed his plea to guilty before the court.

Kaur's relatives said that the family was "pleased and satisfied" with the guilty plea.

The matter will return to court in April.

In South Australia, murder carries a mandatory minimum 20-year non-parole period.

According to the police, Kaur was "taken by force" by a man after finishing her shift at Southern Cross Homes in North Plympton just before 10 p.m. on March 5, 2022.

"I regret the day I said yes to sending my daughter to Australia... I miss her everyday," Kaur's mother Rashpal Gathwal had told 7NEWS months after her death.

Kaur, originally from India, had been living with her relatives in Adelaide and was working as an aged care worker while studying to become a nurse, 9 News reported.

She was reported missing by them when her employer called her family to ask about her absence from the shift.

IANS