Maid snatches walking stick from 94-year-old employer, shoves him, causing 2cm head laceration
A domestic helper snatched her 94-year-old employer’s walking stick and shoved him, causing him to hit his head against a wall and suffer a 2cm laceration.
According to Shin Min Daily News, the employer had knocked on his helper’s bedroom door with his walking stick at night, asking to be taken out for food.
The accused, 31-year-old Indonesian domestic helper Sulastri Wulandari, admitted on August 15 to one charge of causing hurt by a rash act. She was sentenced to eight weeks’ jail.
Employer knocked on maid’s door with walking stick for 10 seconds
The two lived together in a flat at Block 34, Telok Blangah Drive, with each occupying a separate bedroom. The victim required the accused’s assistance with his daily activities.
At about 10.37pm on February 21, the accused was resting in her room when the victim knocked on her door and asked her to take him out to get some food.
The accused opened the door and explained that he had already eaten earlier that evening, before closing the door.
The victim then went to the living room, picked up his walking stick and used both hands to repeatedly knock on the accused’s bedroom door with the bottom of the stick for about 10 seconds.
When the accused opened the door and saw the victim standing outside with the walking stick, she lost her temper.
She grabbed the walking stick with both hands and tried to take it from him.
The victim held on tightly, and the two began struggling over the walking stick.
Employer suffered 2cm head laceration
During the struggle, the accused shoved the victim while pulling at the walking stick and tried to pry his hands off it. After about 20 seconds, the victim lost his balance and fell backwards, hitting the back of his head against the wall and suffering a bleeding wound. The entire incident was captured on CCTV at the residence.
The accused stop struggling immediately and tended to the victim’s injuries.
At about 11.23pm, she informed the victim’s nephew that he had fallen and been injured. The nephew arrived and found the victim bleeding from the head, before arranging him to be taken to the emergency department at Singapore General Hospital.
Doctors found a 2cm laceration on the victim’s scalp, as well as a left-sided subdural haemorrhage. He was hospitalised from February 22 to 25 for treatment and observation.
During his stay, he received a platelet transfusion to prevent the subdural bleeding from worsening.
Maid apologised for not taking better care of ‘Ah Gong’
In mitigation, the accused, who was unrepresented, pleaded for leniency and said she had realised her mistake.
She said she had failed to take good care of “Ah Gong” and hoped to apologise to him and his family.
The prosecution said the accused, as the victim’s caregiver, should have known that he was elderly and physically frail, making him a vulnerable person under the law. Despite this, she engaged in a rash act that could have endangered his personal safety.
The prosecution asked the judge to sentence her to nine weeks’ jail.
See something interesting? Contribute your story to us.
