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7 weeks’ jail for woman who abused maid by hitting her with clothes hangers, kicking her

SINGAPORE — A woman who abused her domestic worker several times, such as by kicking her in the groin area and striking her repeatedly with clothes hangers till they broke, was jailed for seven weeks on Tuesday (Sept 28).

Wang Xiaohui (pictured) was convicted of one charge of voluntarily causing hurt to a domestic worker in her Ang Mo Kio flat.

Wang Xiaohui (pictured) was convicted of one charge of voluntarily causing hurt to a domestic worker in her Ang Mo Kio flat.

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  • Wang Xiaohui hit Ms Ngo Sabal on four occasions in 2019
  • She struck the domestic worker with three plastic clothes hangers and a wooden one on the last occasion
  • She did not take Ms Sabal to the doctor and told her to discard the broken hanger pieces
  • A judge found that Wang’s major depressive disorder did not substantially impair her self-control and restraint

 

SINGAPORE — A woman who abused her domestic worker several times, such as by kicking her in the groin area and striking her repeatedly with clothes hangers till they broke, was jailed for seven weeks on Tuesday (Sept 28).

Wang Xiaohui, 35, was suffering from major depressive disorder at the time of her offences, but a judge found that it did not substantially impair her self-control and restraint.

The Singaporean, who works as a music teacher, was also ordered to pay S$2,000 in compensation to Ms Ngo Sabal.

Wang had pleaded guilty in May to one charge of voluntarily causing hurt to the 25-year-old Myanmar national in her Ang Mo Kio flat. Three other similar charges were taken into consideration for sentencing. 

She was recommended for an 18-month mandatory treatment order — a community sentencing option offered to offenders suffering from mental conditions that contributed to their offending.

However, District Judge May Mesenas noted that abuse cases involving foreign domestic workers usually attract a custodial jail term, with a fine or mandatory treatment order imposed only in exceptional cases. 

In Wang’s case, the psychiatrist who examined her stated that her major depressive disorder affected her ability to exercise self-control over her actions to a moderate extent. 

This was not substantial enough to warrant departing from the usual sentencing framework, District Judge Mesenas said in rejecting a mandatory treatment order for Wang.

The judge added that she hoped Wang would be able to continue going for regular follow-ups for her psychiatric treatment, and that there were other ways for her to handle the situation rather than vent her frustration on Ms Ngo Sabal.

She will begin serving her jail time in a month to sort out care arrangements for her two toddlers.

Wang’s lawyers, Mr Cory Wong and Mr Josephus Tan from Invictus Law Corporation, did not state if they will be appealing against the sentence. 

ANGRY OVER DISHES

The court previously heard that Ms Ngo Sabal began working for the household in March 2019, performing household chores and looking after Wang’s two young children.

It was her first time working in Singapore.

Court documents showed that Wang first abused her in May that year by hitting her head twice.

The next month, she hit Ms Ngo Sabal again five times and kicked her in the groin area.

In July, Wang then hit the worker with part of a vacuum cleaner.

Then, on July 16, Wang told Ms Ngo Sabal to wash and dry some clothing by hand to avoid contaminating the rest of the family’s clothes. The clothing belonged to Wang, who had chickenpox at the time.

The worker washed Wang’s clothes separately but dried them together in the washing machine with a dryer function. Wang scolded her and told her to remove the clothes.

Later that day, she told Ms Ngo Sabal to wash her dishes separately from the family’s, but the worker used the same sponge for all the dishes.

Seeing red, Wang struck her with a plastic hanger several times till it broke, then beat her on her arm and back with two other plastic hangers until they also broke.

She turned to using a wooden hanger, striking Ms Ngo Sabal's arm, back, thigh and head several times while shouting at her and scolding her.

She stopped when this hanger broke as well and she then told Ms Ngo Sabal to discard the broken pieces in the rubbish chute.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Janice See told the court: "Despite the victim sustaining extensive bruising from the beatings, the accused did not take the victim to seek medical attention.” 

Two days after this assault, Ms Ngo Sabal came across a 40-year-old woman at a playground and approached her, rolling up her sleeves to reveal bruises on her left upper arm. She said that her employer had hit her.

The woman took photographs of the bruises and called the police. The relationship between Ms Ngo Sabal and the 40-year-old woman was not specified in court documents.

Officers went to Wang’s flat a few hours later and Ms Ngo Sabal was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, where she was treated for her injuries.

She has stayed at a shelter since then and said that she no longer wishes to work in Singapore.

For voluntarily causing hurt, Wang could be jailed for up to two years or fined up to S$5,000, or both.

If the crimes involve a domestic worker, offenders may receive one-and-a-half times the maximum punishment.

Related topics

crime court assault maid abuse employer foreign domestic worker

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