A domestic helper in Singapore was subjected to physical abuse after she was forced to do squats by her employer.
To add insult to injury, she was also made to degrade herself by calling herself names while performing the squats, reported The Straits Times.
Became angry over jacket
According to Deputy Public Prosecutor Jeremy Bin, he said the accused, Eylaiza Benazir Mohamad Ausman, had returned home on July 23, 2024, and saw the maid helping her five-year-old daughter put on a jacket.
Court documents showed that the girl had requested to wear the jacket as she found it to be pretty.
However, this made Eylaiza extremely unhappy as she believed her daughter would feel too hot, and instructed the maid to do 20 squats while saying ‘saya bodoh’ (I’m stupid).
As the maid was doing the squats, Eylaiza went to the fridge and saw that the maid didn’t place some frozen food in its chiller compartment.
This enraged her even more and she ordered the maid to do another 20 squats while saying ‘saya gila‘ (I’m crazy).
After doing the 40 squats, the maid suffered leg cramps and was unable to stand properly.
Unfortunately, Eylaiza continued the abuse by throwing a sweet potato at the maid’s shin and ordering her to do 20 more squats while saying “saya gila”
This was after Eylaiza found out the maid helper had bought sweet potatoes from Indonesia instead of Japan.
While the maid tried her best to finish the squats, she couldn’t due to the leg cramps.
Although Eylaiza’s husband tried to intervene, it didn’t stop Eylaiza from pulling the maid’s ear, splashing her face with water from a milk bottle, and shoving her left shoulder.
Unable to put up with the abuse, the maid made her escape that same day by claiming she wanted to throw some rubbish. She then called the police, but it’s not known whether Eylaiza was arrested soon after.
A medical examination later showed that the maid had tenderness in both shins.
Verbally abused hospital staff & police
Eylaiza was known to have an extremely hot temper, as recorded in an unrelated incident back on March 6, 2024 at KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH).
After sending her then five-month-old son to KKH, Eylaiza got into an argument with staff which eventually led to her calling the police.
Even when police arrived, Eylaiza remained combative and refused to lower her voice despite being told to do so more than 10 times. She also accused an officer of pushing her and said he was “so sassy like a girl”.
Court documents showed that Eylaiza was later charged in court for the altercation in 2025.
Jailed 7 months
Eylaiza pleaded guilty to one count of assault involving the maid, and a harassment charge pertaining to the hospital incident.
Her lawyer Rohit Kumar Singh told the court that Eylaiza is remorseful and said the maid didn’t suffer long-term disabilities or permanent scarring from the squats.
She was sentenced to seven months’ jail and fined S$5,000 (approx. RM15,400).
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