3 hours ago
5
SINGAPORE: A woman who abused her sons and threw her boyfriend's phone down from the fifth floor of a housing block, along with a standing fan, was sentenced to a prison term on Wednesday (Apr 22).
The 36-year-old Vietnamese woman, who is a Singapore permanent resident, pleaded guilty to one count each of ill-treating her son and committing a rash act. Several other charges were taken into consideration.
THE CASE
The court heard that the woman, who cannot be named to protect her sons' identities, had two boys with her ex-boyfriend, a 53-year-old Singaporean man.
The woman had custody of her sons, then aged eight and nine.
In early September 2024, the older son went to the market in the morning to buy noodles. He soiled his pants as he suddenly felt the urge to defecate.
When he got home, his mother told him to go straight to the toilet, where she washed him.
During the shower, the woman was angry with the boy for soiling himself. She used the showerhead to hit his head before pushing his head onto the wall multiple times.
The boy suffered cuts on his head and bled profusely.
His mother bandaged him, but the boy did not seek medical treatment.
The boy and his brother later told their father that they had been slapped by their mother at her house. A video later showed the woman hitting her two sons with cardboard.
The father informed the authorities about the abuse and the police were brought in.
THE RASH ACT
On Nov 24, 2025, the woman's boyfriend, a 55-year-old Singaporean who is not the boys' father, went to her flat to fix some items and stayed overnight.
The next day, the woman emerged from the kitchen angrily while looking for her medicine. When her boyfriend offered to help, she got upset and scolded him.
They had an argument and the woman threw a standing fan and water kettle onto the floor.
The boyfriend left to return to his own flat a few floors down in the same block. When he realised he had forgotten his phone, he went back to retrieve it only to be told that his girlfriend had thrown it downstairs.
The boyfriend went down and found his phone on the ground outside the block, along with the standing fan.
An unrelated man lodged a police report over the items being thrown.
During investigations, the woman claimed initially that her boyfriend had thrown the items. She alleged that he had been drinking and grown violent during their argument.
When confronted with the photos of the thrown items, the woman changed her account and admitted throwing them.
The prosecutor sought 12 weeks' jail for the rash act and 18 months' jail for the child abuse.
He said the nine-year-old boy was vulnerable and much smaller than his mother, making him completely incapable of defending himself.
The attack was also completely unwarranted and "grossly disproportionate" to any alleged wrongdoing, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Chan Yi Cheng.
He said several charges were taken into consideration where the woman abused her two sons for a few months until this was discovered in late November 2024.
As for the rash act, Mr Chan said killer litter cases are serious as items thrown from height pose significant safety risks.
The woman was sentenced to 15 months and 12 weeks' jail. When a prison sentence is imposed that combines months with four weeks or more, CNA reports the sentences as spelt out by the court as months vary in length.
The woman was previously sentenced to six weeks' jail in August 2025 for the same offence, he added.
For ill-treating a child in her care, she could have been jailed for up to eight years, fined up to S$8,000 or both.
For a rash act endangering life or personal safety, she could have been jailed for up to six months, fined up to S$2,500, or both.
