A woman has been jailed for at least 12 years after stabbing her married lover and employee in the heart after he revealed an affair with another woman.
She pleaded guilty to manslaughter, which prosecutors rejected, and was found guilty of murder by a jury in June.
Justice Hament Dhanji sentenced her to a total of 16 years on Monday, but said the sentence will do nothing for Mr Apostol’s family.
“They have lost far too soon, and entirely unjustly, a man that they hold dear,” he said.
Niguidula had also been violent towards Mr Apostol’s brother-in-law, whom she married in 2009 before divorcing in 2015.
Justice Dhanji said Niguidula might question the value of imprisoning her, but domestic violence offenders need deterrence.
There was evidence Mr Apostol had sought to end his relationship and employment with Niguidula and return to his wife, before she stabbed him in the chest, the judge said.
The knife entered between the ribs and faced little resistance beyond the skin, experts told the court.
Others gave evidence about severe borderline personality disorder impairing Niguidula’s ability to reason and consider the consequences of her actions at the time.
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The judge was not satisfied she was significantly impaired but her mental condition contributed, along with a fluctuating but heightened emotional state after she learned of the affair.
He found Niguidula’s mental disorders lowered the moral culpability of her crime.
She did not intend to cause Mr Apostol anything more than grievous bodily harm when she impulsively stabbed him once in the chest in the context of a heightened emotional state, the judge said.
However, he noted evidence suggesting Mr Apostol sought to reconcile with and return to his wife, finding he was vulnerable and had a degree of dependence on Niguidula: his boss he was in an intimate relationship with and whom he owed money, who then killed him.
Niguidula was also convicted of assaulting Mr Apostol with a lamp in the days before his death. However, no further penalty was imposed.
She has been in custody since her arrest in December 2019.
The judge sentenced her to a total of 16 years with a non-parole period of 12 years.
Niguidula will be eligible for parole in December 2031.
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