Singapore - A Singapore court on Friday sentenced a single mum who killed her son and then tried to take her own life to seven years in jail, in a case the judge described as "tragic and unfortunate," media reports said.

Found by psychiatrists to suffer from an "abnormality of the mind," Kang Ka Li, 37, suffocated her 12-year-old son to death with a towel on May 15 last year, after feeding him sedatives.

Kang, a divorcee, then took 50 tablets meant for high blood pressure and cut her wrists with a knife before calling her boyfriend, the online edition of Straits Times newspaper reported.

As the man became suspicious, he rushed to the flat and found the mother and her son.

The boy was declared dead in hospital, while his mum was rescued and arrested.

Kang had been depressed since she lost her job and faced financial problems, her lawyer said.

She was due to appear in court for forgery after faking a letter to get a credit, but the night before she had to stand trial Kang decided to take her own life and kill her son as she did not trust anybody to take care of the boy.

The judge said he passed the sentence for culpable homicide "with a heavy heart," according to the report. (dpa)