Findings Reveal How BU Teen’s Infatuation With Victim Turned Into Hatred And A Desire To Kill Her
A psychiatrist found the 15-year-old had schizophrenia, psychopathic and sadistic traits, and had also called his classmates "subhuman, valueless game objects" before fatally stabbing Yap Shing Xuen.
Cover image via SAYSFollow us on Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp for the latest stories and breaking news.
The teenager who fatally stabbed his 16-year-old schoolmate at a Bandar Utama school in October last year had described his classmates as "NPCs" in a journal documenting his psychotic thoughts
Senior consultant forensic psychiatrist Dr Ian Lloyd Anthony said the boy, identified as L, viewed his classmates as "subhuman, valueless game objects" — referring to non-player characters (NPCs) in video games that are controlled by the computer rather than a player.
The boy's journal also recorded beliefs that his SMK Bandar Utama Damansara (4) classmates were conspiring against him, deserved to die, and would lie to police to make him appear guilty.
Anthony said the entries also showed that the boy had expressed a wish for mass casualties, FMT reported.
The findings were disclosed in the grounds of judgment released today, 23 September, after Shah Alam High Court judge Adlin Abdul Majid acquitted the teenager of murder on 14 September, ruling that he was of unsound mind when the incident occurred.
The court ordered him to be detained and treated at Hospital Bahagia Ulu Kinta in Perak at the pleasure of the Sultan of Selangor.
The boy had become increasingly isolated
Anthony diagnosed the teenager with schizophrenia with psychopathic and sadistic traits.
He also said the boy had a strong genetic predisposition to mental illness, with some family members having previously suffered from mental disorders.
According to the report, his condition worsened over several years, with his family and teachers noticing changes during Malaysia's pandemic-era movement control order (MCO). He became withdrawn, isolated, and stopped communicating with his family.
He also developed a persistent belief that he was physically unattractive and that people at school were laughing at him, which led him to wear a mask constantly.
Anthony described this as a paranoid delusion.
The teenager also became suspicious of CCTV cameras around him, believing that he was "being watched by the eye".
The psychiatrist said the boy developed an interest in school shooters and serial killers, identifying with them because they had also been bullied and socially isolated and were driven by a desire to be recognised.
The court had previously heard that he had experienced mental illness and delusions for about five years without treatment.
His feelings towards the victim, Yap Shing Xuen, also changed
Anthony said the teenager became infatuated with the girl whom he later stabbed to death, initially observing and following her at school and creating social media accounts to follow her online.
He eventually became convinced that she reciprocated his feelings and was in love with him, which Anthony described as an erotomanic delusion.
That changed after the teenager watched a video about a Japanese man, 28-year-old Tatsuya Ichihashi, who murdered a 22-year-old British teacher, Lindsay Ann Hawker, in March 2007, according to the psychiatrist.
Anthony said the Malaysian teenager's feelings towards the girl then shifted from infatuation to envy, anger, and hatred, eventually developing into an intention to kill her.
He also experienced auditory hallucinations, including a voice from an anime character telling him to kill the girl.
The victim, Yap Shing Xuen, and the accused, identified only as 'L'.
Image via Social mediaHe followed her into the toilet before the attack
The grounds of judgment said the teenager saw the girl heading towards a female toilet during an examination on 14 October 2025 and followed her there.
According to the New Straits Times, he confronted her with a knife and led her into the second cubicle, where he locked the door and told her that he liked her.
When she resisted and tried to leave, he pushed her and began stabbing her. A post-mortem report recorded between 180 and 200 stab and incised wounds across various parts of her body.
She died from multiple stab wounds to the neck and chest.
The judgment said the weapon was a knife measuring about 30cm, with "Leatherneck SF" engraved on the blade.
The teenager was acquitted after the court accepted that he was of unsound mind at the time of the offence. His detention and treatment at Hospital Bahagia Ulu Kinta will continue at the pleasure of the Sultan of Selangor.
