A 36-year-old Myanmar national who was working as a maid was convicted on 24 February of voluntarily causing hurt in committing a robbery.
She had robbed her 61-year-old employer of more than $37,000 in cash and valuables and in the process, she used a laptop to hit the victim on her head until the laptop broke.
The victim suffered multiple cuts on her hands and head as the maid then fled with her the cash and valuables, buying a plane ticket home.
One more charge of cheating by personation will be considered during her sentencing.
The identities of the maid and the victim cannot be revealed due to a court order protecting the identity of the victim.
What happened?
On 17 January 2020, at about 10.30am, the victim was sleeping in her bedroom when she suddenly felt something sharp on her neck.
She then woke up and found her maid armed with a kitchen knife, demanding she hand over her valuables and threatening to kill her if she didn’t do so.
The two then struggled and the victim got cut on her hands by the weapon, the maid then used a laptop and hit the victim, who was using her hands to cover her head in an attempt to protect herself.
She pleaded with the maid not to hurt her and said that the key to her valuables was in her bag.
The maid then took her diamond ring and used a pair of scissors to remove her necklace, with the total loot amounting to more than $37,000.
The maid then asked the victim how to go to the airport, to which the victim told her to take the MRT.
The maid then tied her up with some pieces of cloth and left the home, heading to the area of City Hall with the intention of buying an air ticket to Myanmar.
She then used the victim’s credit card for a taxi to Changi Airport, but she was subsequently arrested before she managed to get onto the plane.
The victim had freed herself and crawled to the living room to call the police for help, as she bled from her head and hands.
She was afraid her maid would return so she locked her doors as she waited for the police to come.
The victim suffered cuts on her hand and scalp, as well as a fractured finger (her left little finger) from the robbery.