SINGAPORE: A domestic helper from Myanmar was sentenced to one year and four weeks in jail on Tuesday (Feb 11) for hitting and manhandling his 82-year-old charge, who suffered from dementia and Alzheimer’s.
Thant Zin Oo, 36, pleaded guilty to three charges of voluntarily causing hurt to a vulnerable person. Two additional similar charges were taken into consideration for his sentencing.
Zin was hired as a domestic helper five-and-a-half years ago for the victim, who has suffered from dementia since 2015. He shared a room with and took care of the man, who also had Alzheimer’s at the time of the abuse.
Due to his condition, the victim needed Zin to help him move around, shower, eat and change his clothes and diapers. He was mostly bed-bound and depended on the domestic helper for his daily needs.
On five occasions between February 2024 to March 2024, the domestic helper hit the victim’s head and manhandled or swung him, hitting his head on the bedframe or wall.
The victim was unable to accurately remember or properly complain about any abuse against him, the court heard.
Three other tenants resided in the unit where Zin stayed with the victim, and Zin had no complaints with regards to his pay, food or amount of rest.
In early 2023, the victim’s son, who visited him about once a week, noticed bruises on his father’s chest and arms, and asked Zin about what had happened.
The domestic helper said the victim probably scratched or hit himself in his sleep, and the victim’s son asked him to inform him if new bruises appeared so they could seek medical attention if needed.
In mid-2023, another tenant informed the victim’s son that Zin often shouted at the victim, and in August that year, the victim’s son and daughter decided to monitor the situation by installing a closed-circuit television camera, which produced footage that would be overwritten about every two months.
In March 2024, the victim’s family started to feel that something was wrong and decided to check the footage more closely – they were “shocked” to find videos of Zin abusing the victim.
The victim’s son decided to take him to the hospital to check for injuries on Apr 1, 2024, where the hospital staff lodged a police report.
Zin was arrested on Apr 3, 2024. During investigations, he denied abusing the victim and claimed his actions were an accident, despite having seen the video footage, the court heard.
“VERY SERIOUS” ABUSE OF TRUST
Deputy Public Prosecutor Teo Lu Jia noted that the case involved an abuse of trust and gratuitous violence, asking the judge to consider the need for deterrence and retribution.
She called for a sentence of 16-and-a-half months, noting that the victim was both physically and mentally infirm. He was delusional and unable to protect himself, which would have made the case difficult to detect.
Ms Teo noted the “very serious” abuse of trust, since Zin was hired, paid by and treated well by the family to take care of the victim.
“There was clearly an abuse of trust. He was the caregiver, but he instead went to abuse the victim,” she added.
The video footage also established that the five incidents of abuse took place over a period of time, which indicated that this was not a one-off act of frustration, said Ms Teo, noting that Zin also targeted vulnerable spots like the victim’s head and neck.
Zin’s lawyer, Mr U Sudharshanraj Naidu from Withers KhattarWong, argued that Zin had “no deliberate intent” to cause suffering or go out of his way in the course of his work to cause harm to the victim.
Mr Naidu noted that Zin was wearing a back brace in the video footage, stressing that transferring the victim was “truly a difficult task”.
He also presented a character reference by the victim’s son, which noted that Zin had gone beyond what was required of him in many instances – cooking for the victim and cutting his hair.
While Zin is “extremely sorry” for what he did, his actions were a “negative manifestation” of caregiver burden, said Mr Naidu.
Zin could not communicate with the victim due to the language barrier, and had “limited knowledge” of how to deal with an individual with dementia, he said, adding that the domestic helper had lost his patience while caring for an individual who is difficult to take care of.
The victim’s son “still stands by” Zin despite what he did, and was present in court to show his support, said Mr Naidu.
In response, Ms Teo argued that caregiver burden should not be a mitigating factor, noting that the victim’s family arranged for Zin to attend “a whole host” of classes, including first aid and elderly care.
“This is not a case where no support was given to him,” she said, adding that the victim’s family also offered to stay in with the victim when Zin wanted to go out.
In meting out Zin’s sentence, District Judge Salina Ishak agreed that there was a “compelling reason to send a deterrent signal” since many Singaporeans engage domestic helpers, and the case could “engender serious public disquiet”.
She also noted that if not for the victim’s family checking closed-circuit television footage, the abuse would not have been discovered.
The punishment for voluntarily causing hurt is up to three years in prison, a fine of up to S$5,000, or both. An individual can be sentenced to up to double this, if they committed the act against a vulnerable person.
