35YO Woman Pleads Guilty to Using 4 Clothes Hangers to Repeatedly Beat Helper Until They Broke

You know, foreign domestic helpers came to Singapore to make money. Not to get abused.

That’s a simple sentence in one of Singapore’s national languages. Yet, too many people don’t seem to understand it.

35 YO Woman Used Clothes Hangers to Beat Helper Until They Broke

Wang Xiaohui, 35, pleaded guilty to one charge of voluntarily causing hurt to her domestic helper, Myanmar national Ngo Sabal, according to TODAYonline.

Sabal was first employed by Wang’s household in March 2019 for household chores and childcare duties. According to documents submitted to the court, Wang began her streak of abuse in as early as May 2019, hitting Sabal twice in the head. 

She hit her helper five times the next month, and then with a vacuum cleaner in July.

The most notable offense came on 16 July, however, when Wang had chicken pox and instructed Sabal to wash and dry her clothes by hand to avoid contaminating other family members’ clothes.

You know, because it doesn’t matter if the domestic helper gets chicken pox. The logic of criminals confounds me.

However, Sabal used the washing machine to dry all the clothes together, and was rebuked by Wang.

Later that day, Sabal washed Wang’s dishes with the same sponge as the rest of the family, an act that provoked Wang into hitting her with a plastic hanger with such force that it broke.

She then turned to two more plastic hangers and a wooden hanger and beat Sabal all over her body while screaming her admonition, only stopping when the wooden hangar, too, broke under the intense force.

Wang did not bring her helper to seek medical attention despite the extensive bruising she suffered from the ordeal, and the abuse only came to light when Sabal approached a 40-year-old woman at a playground for help.

The police were alerted, and Sabal was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH), where her injuries were tended to.

Abuser Claims She Was Just “Playing”

In a report by the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) prepared by the psychiatrist who examined Wang, Wang claimed she was just “playing” as she hit Sabal for her offenses in May and June.

Yeah, you should try playing with others in jail. I’m sure they’ll eagerly play with you too.

Citing the report, the prosecution argued that Wang had “a propensity to colour events such that she is reflected in a positive light”, and sought eight weeks of jail as well as S$2,000 in fines.

Since Wang was previously diagnosed with major depressive disorder, District Judge May Mesenas has requested a report on whether Wang should be given a mandatory treatment order.

She will return to court for sentencing on 21 June. The offense of voluntarily causing hurt carries a maximum jail term of two years and a fine of S$5,000, which can be multiplied by 1.5 times if the victim is a domestic worker.

Feature Image: kilic inan / Shutterstock.com