EDMONTON - A woman who previously served time in jail for a serious assault on her husband has been charged with second-degree murder in his violent death.
Nyuk Hwang, 52, was arrested Sunday night at the couple's home in northeast Edmonton t after calling 911 about her seriously injured husband, Teck Hwang. The 56-year-old man was in cardiac arrest when paramedics arrived about 10 p.m. He died a few hours later in hospital.
Edmonton police Staff Sgt. Bill Clark said homicide investigators were at the house at 8416 160 Avenue within about an hour of the original call.
"This is a classic case of domestic violence, one which we don't normally ... hear of in the news, where it's a wife, in this case, beating on the husband. Usually it's the other way around."
Clark said an autopsy concluded the death was the result of "blunt drastic trauma," a term Clark said he had never heard of in his years as a homicide investigator. He said the cause of death was described by the medical examiner as "a very severe beating," and that police have recovered an "object" they believe was used in the homicide.
He would not say what the object was because the case is before the courts.
The couple's 16-year-old son was home at the time. Clark said the teen is staying with friends and is "obviously very traumatized by the incident.
"One parent has died and the other one is now in jail," he said.
In January 2008, Nyuk Hwang was charged with assault causing bodily harm against her husband, and she was later sentenced to three weeks in jail and two years of probation for the attack. The terms of her probation included taking programming as directed by the courts and her probation officer, including for psychiatric/ psychological, domestic violence, anger management, and marital/parental issues.
Sue Pratap, the family's next door neighbour in Belle Rive, described the couple as "just normal people" who had lived in the home for eight to 10 years. Pratap said she heard raised voices coming from the home on Sunday night, but didn't pay much attention until police showed up at her door.
Nyuk remains in custody. She and will make her first court appearance at 9 a.m. Wednesday.
The homicide marked Edmonton's 17th of 2013, and the second alleged domestic homicide in little more than a month.
Jimmy Rivas-Magana, 26, was charged with second-degree murder in the stabbing death of his wife, Yeny Alfaro, 26. Her body was found inside the couple's Oakridge Mobile Home Park, near 66th Avenue and 17th Street, on July 21. The couple had married in March.
Documents obtained by the Journal last week show Alfaro's family had noticed previous signs of violence, and had concerns about violent and controlling behaviour by Rivas-Magana. None of the alleged incidents had been reported to police.
Rivas-Magana drove his Mitsubishi Lancer off a cliff west of Calgary the day his wife's body was found. He suffered received serious injuries, including fractured thoracic vertebrae. The documents said Rivas-Magana told hospital staff he was trying to kill himself.
Clark said police in Edmonton have seen a 17-per-cent increase in domestic violence reports this year, and the specialized EPS domestic violence unit has investigated 61 cases involving serious violence or injury.
He said it is less common, although not unheard of, to see extreme domestic violence involving a woman attacking a man.
"It just shows that there are these cases out there of horrific domestic violence, and it's something the community needs to be aware of," he said.
The provincial government runs a toll-free 24-hour Family Violence Information Line at 310-1818, and a shelter location line at 1-866-331-3933.
The Government of Alberta's Human Services website says all domestic violence shelters in the province can help men with children by giving them access to short-term emergency accommodation at hotels. Strathmore's Wheatland Shelter also provides help for men with or without children.
Clark said he believes attitudes are changing about domestic violence in Edmonton, and that people are becoming more willing to get involved when they suspect domestic violence.
"If you know of something going on, we need you to step up and take some action," he said.
- With files from Kristin Annable and Mariam Ibrahim
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