For more than a year, 25-year-old Indonesian national Murni Panengsih acted like a demure, sweet lady who always doted on the elderly mother of her employer.
However, what went on between the domestic helper and the 96-year-old woman was far more sinister than anyone would have expected. From July 2014 till September 2015, Murni physically abused the bedridden, sickly woman — slapping, shaking and even punching her on the face and body.
The New Paper reported that she has since been sentenced to 10 months in jail after pleading guilty to multiple counts of repeatedly assaulting the elderly lady.
It was only in September last year that the victim’s daughter came to realise all was not well in her flat in Lavender, after spotting bruises on her mother’s hands and face. While checking the live CCTV feed installed in the flat during a workday, she witnessed a horrifying scene — the maid was hitting the elderly woman multiple times.
Though the daughter — known only as L.C. Ng — would occasionally check the live feed, she had never seen any ill treatment. Reviewing past footage gave Ng a bigger heartache as she saw Murni abusing her mother on many occasions.
The maid had used a water bottle and a towel to hit the victim, and even forcefully pressed and elbowed her face at other times. On one occasion, Murni stuck medical tape over her mouth before beating her.
She had no idea that it went on for so long, especially since her mother never brought up the abuse and always had good things to say about Murni. Her elderly mother also showed signs of dementia, and would occasionally imagine things as well.
A police report was lodged the next day, and a medical check-up on the elderly mother found injuries such as a black eye, bruising around her face and arms, an abrasion on her right ear and swelling on both ankles.
In court, a psychiatrical report revealed that Murni had been suffering from adjustment disorder, contributing significantly to the offences. She had been unable to control her emotions ever since arriving in Singapore, and became even more stressed after being affected by the elderly woman’s incontinence and noise at night.
Murni accepted that her actions were “reprehensible” as she received her sentencing.
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