Maid Jailed For Six Months For Biting Baby Who Refused To Sleep.
A 33-year-old maid in Singapore has been sentenced to six months in jail for ill-treating a one-year-old baby girl in her care.
The domestic help, identified as Masita Khoridaturochmah, was hired to care for twin babies but ended up biting one of them out of frustration when the toddler refused to go to sleep.
According to The Straits Times, Ms. Masita started working for the victim’s mother in 2021. Her primary duties included taking care of her employer’s twin babies, as well as household chores.
On May 26, 2022, Ms. Masita was left at home with the twin infants, who were aged 14 months at the time, while the children’s mother went to pick up her older daughter from preschool.
While attempting to put the babies to sleep, Ms. Masita lost her patience with one of the infants because she thought the victim was keeping her from preparing dinner. As a result, she bit the little girl once on her left forearm, leaving a bruise. When the child’s mother returned home about half an hour later, she noticed the bite mark while preparing the baby for bed. She suspected that Ms. Masita had bitten the little girl and questioned her about it.
The maid initially denied doing so but eventually acknowledged her behavior. Ms. Masita even knelt down and apologized to her employer, but the child’s mother reported the matter to the police.
The prosecutor claimed that the victim was particularly vulnerable and especially young, and Ms. Masita had abused the position of trust she was placed in. According to him, Ms. Masita hurt the victim “willfully,” and the offense was committed because she was upset that the victim wasn’t nodding off as quickly as she would have liked.
District Judge Tan Jen Tse also observed that Ms. Masita had committed the offense out of annoyance in a singular instance of abuse involving a single act and had shown regret shortly after. The judge agreed to Ms. Masita’s request to postpone her sentence for a week so she could put her affairs in order, including contacting her family in Indonesia over arrangements for her return after her imprisonment.
The victim’s mother expressed her disappointment and anger at the incident, stating that the safety and well-being of her children were of the utmost importance. She urged other parents to be vigilant and cautious when employing domestic helpers and to ensure that they are properly vetted and trained before hiring them.
The case has once again highlighted the importance of ensuring that domestic helpers are properly trained and vetted to avoid such incidents in the future. It is crucial to create a safe environment for children and vulnerable individuals in our homes, and the law must take strong action against those who abuse their positions of trust.
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