Maid abuse: Couple face 32 charges

SINGAPORE - A woman is accused of forcing one of her two maids to eat her own vomit, making her strip and taking photographs of her naked. Her husband is accused of hitting both maids numerous times.

IT manager Tay Wee Kiat, 37, and his wife, sales manager Chia Yun Ling, 39, were in court yesterday to face 32 charges, mainly of maid abuse.

Tay - with 21 charges - allegedly hit Indonesian national Fitriyah nine times, and Myanmar national Moe Moe Than six times, with canes, a metal clothing hook and a bamboo stick at his Yishun flat in 2012. He is also accused of making the women slap each other.

On one occasion, he allegedly forced an incense bottle into the mouth of Ms Fitriyah, 32. He is also accused of attempting to bribe her by offering a month's salary and a flight home in exchange for not reporting him to the police.

Chia, who faces 11 charges, allegedly slapped both maids and caned one of them.

On one occasion in June 2012, she allegedly pulled Ms Than's hair, pushed her to the floor and stepped on her chest. She is also accused of making Ms Than strip before taking photos of her.

The most serious charge is that Chia allegedly used a funnel to force sugar down Ms Than's throat, and when the woman vomited, she forced her to swallow her own vomit.

The couple's lawyer, Mr Wee Pan Lee, was granted a three- week adjournment.

If convicted of voluntarily causing hurt, they could each be jailed for up to three years and fined up to $7,500 per charge. If found guilty of offering a bribe, Tay could be jailed for up to seven years and fined. Chia also faces a maximum of seven years in jail and a fine if convicted of forcing the maid to swallow her vomit.

The Ministry of Manpower has also filed charges against the couple for violating work pass conditions, and they will be charged in court on July 3.

The couple did their best to avoid media photographers after yesterday's hearing. They changed their clothes and did not emerge from the State Courts complex until evening, some seven hours after being charged. Tay was masked, while Chia wore sunglasses. Both used large envelopes to hide their faces.

Meanwhile, an unidentified man grabbed Shin Min Daily News photographer Hester Tan's arm as she was taking pictures of the couple. The 27-year-old struggled and tried to shake him off.

In the process, the camera hit and cut her lower lip. She sought treatment and made a police report.

This article was first published on June 13, 2014.
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