A 28-year-old woman has been accused of subjecting two innocent toddlers to a series of horrifying treatment at a preschool.
The allegations include trapping them in a dark storeroom and behind a table, as well as physically assaulting them, according to Channel NewsAsia.
Another woman has also been implicated for failing to protect one of the children during an episode of ill-treatment.
The names of the school and the two women cannot be revealed due to a court order protecting the identity of the two victims.
Unveiling the Shocking Charges
The accused, a 28-year-old woman, was charged on August 3rd with six counts of ill-treating the children under her care in accordance with the Children and Young Persons Act.
On June 22, 2022, the accused woman is said to have trapped a two-year-old boy under a table at the preschool, subjecting him to a harrowing 15-minute ordeal.
Subsequently, she confined him within a dark storeroom for six to seven minutes before adding to his torment by throwing foam blocks into the room while he remained trapped.
The alleged mistreatment continued as she targeted a one-year-and-eight-month-old girl. The girl’s face was reportedly poked, slapped, and she was forced onto her feet, only to be pushed to the ground multiple times.
The woman is also accused of hitting the girl’s face with foam blocks, rubbing tissue paper into her skin forcefully, and subjecting her to violent pinching.
The distressing events did not end there. The woman is alleged to have subjected the two toddlers to further abuse on June 27, 2022.
In a shocking display of cruelty, she pulled a chair from beneath the two-year-old boy, causing him to fall to the ground. She then seated him on a chair and pushed him into a table.
The girl, who was again targeted, was trapped beneath a table laden with objects, with the accused shoving the table multiple times, further traumatizing her.
Over a span of approximately half an hour, the woman purportedly continued her barrage of attacks on the girl. Armed with a plastic divider, she repeatedly struck the girl’s face while she remained trapped behind and beneath the table.
Not content with her actions, the woman allegedly redirected her aggression towards the boy, subjecting him to forceful pinching and slapping.
The Legal Landscape
During her court appearance, the accused woman’s lawyer revealed a significant detail – the woman was five months pregnant at the time of being charged.
Another 28-year-old woman has also been implicated in the disturbing episode. She faces a single charge of failing to protect the girl from ill-treatment. Her involvement revolves around the incident where the girl was targeted with a plastic divider.
Each charge of ill-treating a child under the Children and Young Persons Act, as well as permitting such ill-treatment, carries a potential penalty of up to eight years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to S$8,000, or both.
At the time of writing, the cases against the two women are still pending.