HONG KONG — A couple has been sentenced to life imprisonment over what the High Court has condemned as the “completely disgraceful” abuse and murder of their newborn son in 2019.
Imran Hossain, 32, and Farzana Akter, 29, were convicted on Tuesday of murdering their seven-week-old son, Iyman Hossain, and of child cruelty. On Wednesday, they received life sentences for the murder, along with an additional six years for child cruelty, to be served concurrently.
The case, which relied heavily on circumstantial evidence, detailed the harrowing abuse endured by the infant inside the couple’s subdivided flat in Sham Shui Po. Iyman lost consciousness on August 24, 2019, and died six days later in hospital. A medical examination revealed brain damage, bleeding under the skull, and multiple fractures in his ribs and thighs—injuries consistent with shaken baby syndrome, according to expert testimony.
Madam Justice Amanda Woodcock said she was convinced by the jury’s unanimous verdict that one of the parents had fatally shaken the child with intent to kill, while the other stood by passively, failing in their duty to protect their son.
Adding to the tragedy, the couple falsely blamed their then 22-month-old son, Farhan, accusing him of harming his younger sibling out of jealousy. The judge condemned this attempt to deflect responsibility, calling it “shameless” and “an abomination to anyone.”
“What they did to the deceased and how they failed to protect him is impossible to imagine,” said Woodcock. “It is hard to believe the defendants shamelessly blamed their innocent eldest child for this baby’s death.”
CCTV footage from the hospital showed the parents behaving with unusual calm while their newborn lay gravely injured. The prosecution also emphasized the couple’s delay in seeking urgent medical help and their failure to provide proper nutrition and safety for the baby.
The two surviving children of the couple are now under the care of Hong Kong’s Social Welfare Department. The judge acknowledged that they, too, are victims in what she called a “completely disgraceful saga.”
This case follows another high-profile child murder in Hong Kong. Earlier this year, 42-year-old Lau Kai-ping was sentenced to life for shaking his three-year-old daughter to death in 2020. He has since filed an appeal.
In Hong Kong, murder carries a mandatory life sentence, while child cruelty is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
