A 40-year-old PRC woman has been sentenced to two weeks’ jail after a dispute over the use of a washing machine at a Geylang foot massage shop escalated into violence, leaving her colleague with a deep cut to the hand and a bite wound.
The incident took place on the night of 1 February 2026 at a foot reflexology outlet along Geylang Road, where both women worked as therapists.
According to court proceedings, the accused, identified as Wang Yuanhui (transliterated from Chinese), was convicted of one charge under the Protection from Harassment Act and one charge of voluntarily causing hurt.
Argument Started Over Washing Machine
Court documents revealed that at around 10.20pm, Wang went to the back of the shop to check on a washing machine. Seeing that the cycle had around 17 minutes remaining, she placed a used towel inside before leaving.
A short while later, her 30-year-old colleague, surnamed Sun, noticed that the washing machine had stopped running. Believing someone had interrupted the wash cycle, she angrily demanded to know who had switched it off.
Wang reportedly explained that she thought the washing programme had already finished. However, the victim refused to accept the explanation, insisting Wang had deliberately stopped the machine.
The disagreement quickly escalated into a heated verbal argument.
Fruit Knife Pulled During Confrontation
During the quarrel, Wang allegedly grabbed a fruit knife with a blade measuring around 20cm that was normally used in the shop and pointed it at her colleague in a threatening manner.
Fearing she might be stabbed, the victim immediately tried to wrestle the knife away from Wang.
As both women struggled over the weapon, the victim suffered a 5cm-long cut on her right palm, causing significant bleeding.
The violence did not end there. During the scuffle, Wang also bit the victim on her right upper arm, resulting in another injury.
Other employees at the massage shop quickly intervened and managed to separate the pair before calling for medical assistance.
The injured woman was taken to Changi General Hospital for treatment.
Police Arrested Woman The Same Night
Police officers arrived at the scene shortly after the incident and arrested Wang that same evening.
She was subsequently charged in court two days later.
After hearing the case, the court sentenced the 40-year-old to two weeks’ imprisonment for threatening her colleague with the knife and causing injuries during the altercation.
The case serves as another reminder of how workplace disagreements can rapidly spiral into criminal offences when violence is involved.