A woman abused her Indonesian domestic helper two months after she started working for the household, causing injuries including a broken nose.
Jenny Chan Yun Hui also hit Ms Rasi's head with a plastic bowl, causing bleeding, and struck the maid's face multiple times until her left eye became so swollen she was unable to see out of it.
Chan, 41, pleaded guilty in court yesterday to three assault charges, including one count of causing grievous hurt.
Ms Rasi, 27, who goes by only one name, started work in Chan's condominium unit in Tanjong Rhu Road in February 2016.
The maid, who had to wake up at 6am every day, did not have enough rest and often nodded off while performing her chores. This angered Chan, who started abusing her in April that year.
In one instance, the Singaporean became upset when Ms Rasi did not complete her morning chores and punched her in the eye.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Kelly Ho said Chan also hit the back of the maid's head with a plastic bowl, causing it to bleed. After that, she rinsed off Ms Rasi's blood with a showerhead .
On another occasion, Chan punched Ms Rasi's nose several times after becoming angry with her for waking up late.
She continued hitting the maid even though Ms Rasi complained that she could not breathe through her nose. The maid was later found to have suffered a nasal bone fracture.
When Ms Rasi said she wanted to stop working for the household, Chan told her that if the Indonesian ran away, she would alert the police and the younger woman would then be jailed for 20 years.
Later that day, Chan pinched Ms Rasi's ears with her finger nails, drawing blood.
DPP Ho said: "The accused also punched the victim's eyes multiple times, until the victim's left eye was so swollen that she was unable to see using her left eye for about 30 minutes."
Ms Rasi confided with another maid on June 19, 2016, who advised her to take a taxi to the Indonesian Embassy to seek help.
She did so the next day and was later taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital where she was warded until June 22 that year.
The court heard that Chan has mental issues but details were not revealed yesterday.
Her pre-trial conference will be held on March 11 to arrange another court hearing to assess matters, including whether her mental issues had affected her self-control.
For causing grievous hurt to the maid, Chan can be jailed for up to 15 years and fined.
This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.
