Myanmar national Hsu Yee Mon, 29, was sentenced to a year’s jail on Jan 21 after she pleaded guilty to one charge of ill-treating a child. - ST File Photo
SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN): While taking care of a one-year-old baby who was sick, a domestic helper forcefully pressed his abdomen, hit him in the face and punched him in the chest.
She then applied sugar to the baby’s bruises, and later lied to his parents that he was injured from a fall.
The baby’s father discovered the abuse after viewing closed-circuit television footage.
Myanmar national Hsu Yee Mon, 29, was sentenced to a year’s jail on Jan 21 after she pleaded guilty to one charge of ill-treating a child.
Details about the child and the family’s residence were redacted from court documents to protect the victim’s identity.
The court heard that the incident happened on July 1, 2024. Court documents did not state when Hsu Yee Mon started working for the family.
The baby was feeling unwell that day, so his parents took only his siblings to a childcare centre, and left the baby in their helper’s care before going to work.
At about 6.30pm, the helper fed the infant dinner while he sat in a high chair in the living room. As she fed him, he began to cry.
When he briefly stopped crying, she pressed his abdomen forcefully with her hands.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Darren Ang said the helper then hit the baby on the right cheek with her hand.
Said DPP Ang: “The force of (Hsu Yee Mon)‘s actions caused the victim’s body to swing towards the left, and the baby chair the victim was sitting on to briefly tilt off the ground.
“The victim’s head narrowly missed the wall on his left, and if his head had made direct contact with the wall, it would have caused him further injuries.”
The baby began crying again. Hsu Yee Mon then punched him in the chest.
Bruises started forming on the baby’s cheek and the left side of his upper lip.
The helper then went to the kitchen to get sugar to apply on the baby’s lip so that his injury would be less visible.
When his parents returned at 6.40pm, Hsu Yee Mon lied that the baby was injured after falling in the living room.
After discovering the abuse via CCTV footage, the father informed the police and Hsu Yee Mon was arrested the next day.
She also lied to the police that the victim had been injured after falling down, said DPP Ang.
The prosecutor added: “(Hsu Yee Mon) also claimed that she did not inform the victim’s parents that she had hit the victim because she did not think that she hit him that harshly.”
DPP Ang sought a jail term of between 10 and 12 months, noting that the victim’s age meant he was “utterly defenceless” against the helper.
Hsu Yee Mon has been in remand since Dec 10, 2024. She was not represented by a lawyer.
For the offence of ill-treating a child, she could have been jailed up to eight years, fined up to $8,000, or both. - The Straits Times/ANN
