Deepak Sandhu sentenced to life for Xiaoqing Ke murder

Deepak Sandhu was sentenced to life imprisonment on October 16, 2026, for murdering Xiaoqing Ke, with a minimum term of 28 years. A jury at the Old Bailey had found him guilty of murder and attempting to pervert the course of justice after he denied responsibility and said Ke was alive when he left her flat. The court heard that Sandhu, 24, and Ke, 39, had met in Southampton and communicated through a translation app. Prosecutors said their relationship ended after Ke discovered Sandhu had taken £500 from her and challenged him about his lies. Prosecutor Caroline Carberry said Ke’s rejection and demand for repayment preceded the attack, which she described as revenge. According to the prosecution, Sandhu had falsely presented himself to Ke as a model and actor and made other claims about his circumstances. He had admitted taking the money and lying about his background, but denied killing her. At trial, he claimed he had waited in a laundry room while Ke was with a customer and had not seen the killer. The court heard that Sandhu travelled from Southampton to Ke’s bedsit in Earls Court on December 9, 2025, carrying a knife. Doorbell footage was reported to show him arriving...