Auckland (Avneet Kaur) – Disturbing and emotional details have emerged in the Auckland High Court during the murder trial of a father accused of suffocating his five-year-old daughter after becoming convinced she was suffering from herpes and would face a painful future.
Mukesh Prashad, 38, has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity over the death of his daughter Tulsi Amola, whose body was discovered inside a vehicle parked outside Manukau Police Station in January last year.
According to prosecutors, the South Auckland father became consumed by fears that he had passed the virus to his daughter. The Crown says he believed the child would grow up facing suffering, social rejection and emotional pain, eventually deciding to end both her life and his own.
The court heard that the young girl had developed marks on her body during a family outing to Maraetai Beach shortly after Christmas. Although doctors reportedly told Prashad the marks appeared to be infected insect bites, prosecutors said he remained convinced the child had herpes.
An autopsy later confirmed the five-year-old did not have the virus.
The jury was told that on the night of the incident, Prashad picked up his daughter and drove around Auckland before eventually stopping in a quiet industrial area in East Tamaki.
According to the Crown, the father allegedly told the child: “Today we are both going to die.”
Prosecutors say he then used a pillow to smother the little girl inside the vehicle.
In one of the most emotional moments revealed in court, the child’s final cries were described before the jury. Prosecutors said the girl repeatedly begged her father to stop as she fought for her life.
The court also heard that Prashad had recently returned to New Zealand from Melbourne, where he had been working while his wife and daughter remained in Auckland. Prosecutors allege he believed he contracted herpes while living in Australia and later became overwhelmed with fear and guilt.
After the child’s death, the accused allegedly drove away and later attempted to take his own life near an estuary by injuring himself with rocks. However, the attempt was unsuccessful.
Shortly after midnight, Prashad allegedly drove to Manukau Police Station and approached officers, telling them he had killed his daughter.
Police later discovered the child’s body inside the vehicle parked outside the station.
The Crown told jurors the killing was planned and intentional, while the defence argues the accused was mentally unwell at the time of the incident.
The trial is continuing in the Auckland High Court.
