A domestic worker from Indonesia has been sentenced to 12 weeks’ imprisonment after being found guilty of assaulting an 85-year-old woman suffering from severe dementia.
The worker, Indah Nur Wahyuni, was captured on closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage shaking and hitting the elderly woman multiple times.
According to reports, the incident came to light when the victim’s daughter, Judy Cheryl Yeong, noticed bruises on her mother and confronted Indah about them. Initially, Indah denied any wrongdoing but later confessed when threatened with a medical check-up for the victim.
In court, Assistant Public Prosecutor Lydia Goh revealed that CCTV footage recorded on March 6 showed Indah roughly handling the elderly woman during meal times. The footage showed Indah using both hands to forcefully move the victim’s head, shaking her repeatedly with one hand, and hitting her back twice. Additional footage from March 7 revealed Indah pushing the victim’s forehead, which was taken into consideration during sentencing.
Disturbed by what she had witnessed, Yeong contacted the employment agency responsible for hiring Indah and shared the CCTV footage. She made it clear that she no longer wanted Indah to continue working for her family. The employment agency promptly retrieved Indah from Yeong’s residence the following day and she was subsequently arrested on August 29, the report added.
During investigations, Indah admitted to hitting and pushing the vulnerable victim when confronted with the recorded footage. The prosecution stated that Indah was aware of the victim’s vulnerability as she was unable to communicate or defend herself against abuse.
Prosecutor Goh sought a jail term of 10 to 12 weeks for Indah, arguing that the severity of her actions warranted a strong sentence.
District Judge Prem Raj agreed with Goh’s assessment, highlighting the clear breach of trust that occurred and emphasizing that workers who abuse those under their care should be held equally accountable as those who abuse domestic workers.
In sentencing, Judge Raj acknowledged Indah’s early plea of guilty but made it clear that a harsher sentence would have been imposed otherwise.
Indah could have faced a maximum penalty of three years’ imprisonment or a fine of up to S$5,000 for voluntarily causing hurt. Additionally, for assaulting a vulnerable person, the potential penalty could have been doubled.
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