SINGAPORE - A woman who was unhappy that her daughter-in-law’s domestic helper had left a hot iron unattended used the appliance to burn the 28-year-old’s arm.
Tan Loan Eng, 67, left the iron on the Myanmar national’s right arm for about four seconds in total, leaving the helper in tears.
Tan was on June 15 convicted of one charge of voluntarily causing hurt. She will return to court on July 2 to be sentenced.
The court heard that at the time of the offence, Tan was living with her husband, her son, her daughter-in-law and two grandchildren.
On Sept 6, 2024, the helper, who joined the household on July 11, 2024, was ironing clothes while Tan and her husband were at home.
After she finished ironing the clothes, she unplugged the appliance and placed it on the floor near a wooden cupboard. She then kept the clothes and ironing board.
Tan was upset when she saw the hot iron on the floor, as she felt it could damage the floor and cupboard, or start a fire.
She confronted the helper and told her not to leave the iron that way.
When the helper replied that the iron was not hot, Tan grabbed the helper’s right arm, took the appliance and pressed it on her forearm for two seconds before asking the helper if the iron was hot.
When the helper replied that it was not, Tan pressed the iron against the same arm for another two seconds, until the helper started crying and apologised.
The court heard that Tan refused to accept the apology, but allowed the helper to continue with her chores.
Later that evening, the helper took a photograph of her forearm and sent it to her employment agency. She did not tell Tan’s son and daughter-in-law what had transpired when they returned home that night.
The day after the incident, an employee from the helper’s agency contacted the daughter-in-law and told her that Tan had burned the helper’s arm with an iron.
The agent said the helper should be taken to a doctor.
The daughter-in-law purchased some medical creams and bandages for the helper on the same day, before taking her back to the agency on Sept 8, 2024.
The helper sought medical treatment the next day, leading the doctor to make a police report.
Tan, who was represented by lawyer Jocinda Wong, told the court she had grown up in China where physical punishment was the norm.
Wong said the physical punishments suffered by Tan in her childhood led to her being diagnosed with major depression.
The lawyer also said that Tan has since written a cashier’s order of $10,000 to the helper as a sign of her remorse.
The prosecution is seeking an additional two months’ worth of lost income for the helper, or $1,000, and a jail term of between 18 and 21 months for Tan.
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