{"id":5496,"date":"2021-06-22T12:22:32","date_gmt":"2021-06-22T12:22:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thewalkeronline.com\/?p=5496"},"modified":"2021-06-22T12:22:32","modified_gmt":"2021-06-22T12:22:32","slug":"singaporean-who-tortured-and-killed-myanmar-maid-gets-30-years-in-jail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thewalkeronline.com\/?p=5496","title":{"rendered":"Singaporean Who Tortured and Killed Myanmar Maid Gets 30 Years in Jail"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nTuesday, June 22, 2021
\nA Singaporean woman found guilty of starving, torturing and killing her domestic worker from Myanmar, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison.<\/p>\n

Piang Ngaih Don reportedly weighed only 24kg (53lb) when she died from her injuries in 2016.<\/p>\n

Prosecutors have called the actions of Gaiyathiri Murugayan, the wife of a policeman “evil and utterly inhumane”.<\/p>\n

It is among a series of high-profile maid abuse cases in the wealthy city-state in recent years.<\/p>\n

Ms Murugayan, 40, had pleaded guilty to a number of charges including culpable homicide against Ms Piang.<\/p>\n

The judge said the prosecution had painted a “shocking” picture of how the 24-year old woman was tortured, humiliated, starved and ultimately killed.<\/p>\n

He said the case was “one of the worst cases of culpable homicide” in the city-state and that words could not accurately describe the level of abuse the young woman had to endure in the month before her death.<\/p>\n

CCTV footage from cameras installed in the house showed the abuse she suffered in the last month of her life, often being assaulted several times a day.<\/p>\n

Ms Murugayan also reportedly burned her with a heated clothes iron and was accused of “throwing her around like a ragdoll”.<\/p>\n

The court heard that Ms Piang’s meals often consisted of sliced bread soaked in water, cold food from the fridge, or some rice. She lost 15kg – about 38% of her body weight – in 14 months.<\/p>\n

The 24-year-old helper died in July 2016 after she was repeatedly assaulted over several hours by Ms Murugayan and her mother.<\/p>\n

An autopsy report later found Ms Piang died from oxygen deprivation to her brain after being repeatedly choked.<\/p>\n

Ms Murugayan’s lawyers had sought a sentence of eight or nine years, arguing that the defendant had been suffering from depression and obsessive compulsive personality disorder.<\/p>\n

Her husband – who has been suspended from his job as a police officer – and her mother face several charges linked to the case.<\/p>\n

Singapore is home to around 250,000 foreign domestic workers, typically from countries like Indonesia, Myanmar or the Philippines.<\/p>\n

Abuse cases are not uncommon. In 2017, a couple were jailed for starving their domestic worker from the Philippines. In 2019, another couple was jailed for abusing a worker from Myanmar.<\/p>\n

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