4 weeks' jail for maid who threw dog from third-storey balcony
The 11-year-old toy poodle, named Dou Dou, landed on a grass patch on the ground floor and started bleeding from its mouth. It had to be euthanised.
PHOTO: Lianhe Zaobao
PUBLISHED ONJuly 09, 2020 1:10 AMByShaffiq Alkhatib
A maid was so annoyed by her employer's noisy pets that she flung a dog from the third-storey balcony of a house.
The 11-year-old toy poodle named Dou Dou landed on a grass patch and started bleeding from its mouth.
The Indonesian maid, Guyanti Wulandari, 28, then alerted her employer, Mr Stanley Hui, who took the dog to a vet. It was found to have suffered multiple injuries and was euthanised to reduce its suffering.
PAIN & SUFFERING
Guyanti was sentenced yesterday to four weeks' jail after pleading guilty to one count of causing unnecessary pain and suffering to the dog.
Defence lawyer Louis Lim, who represented the maid pro bono, told the court that the maid started working at the Sunrise Walk house near Yio Chu Kang Road on Dec 15 last year.
She was tasked to perform chores, including cooking and looking after Mr Hui's pets - two birds and two dogs. She had no prior experience in caring for pets, Mr Lim said.
National Parks Board (NParks) prosecutor Packer Mohammad said the maid went to a third-storey bedroom on May 13 this year to clean a bird cage. Dou Dou was also in the room.
Guyanti became annoyed as the birds were noisy and Dou Dou kept barking at her.
Mr Packer said Guyanti opened the glass door to the balcony, picked up the dog and threw it down from the balcony.
She then panicked and ran downstairs to check on the dog before alerting Mr Hui.
Suspecting the maid had thrown Dou Dou down, he contacted NParks the next day.
During investigations, Guyanti said she was under "a lot of stress" at the time.
She said Mr Hui's father, who had helped take care of the pets, had returned to Hong Kong, resulting in more work for her.
Urging the court to sentence his client to a "minimal fine", Mr Lim said she had "snapped" that day and could not explain why she had committed the offence.
He said: "The accused has learnt from her mistake and is distressed by this entire affair, and is extremely apologetic for any hardship and pain she had caused."
For causing unnecessary pain and suffering to the dog, Guyanti could have been jailed for up to 18 months and fined up to $15,000.
This article was first published in The Straits Times.
