Couple charged over maid’s death

SHE claimed that she only understood simple Malay.And she told the court that she had no problem admitting to murdering her maid. But magistrate Maimoonah Aid made clear to her that she was not asking for her plea.

At the Petaling Jaya magistrate’s court yesterday, 29-year- old housewife Cheng Pei Ee was charged with the murder of her Indonesian maid, known only as Kunasir, under Section 302 of the Penal Code.Cheng was alleged to have committed the offence on Aug 14 at her house at 40, Jalan Mawar 1A, Puchong Perdana, Puchong, between 5pm and 7pm. She faces the mandatory death sentence.

Maimoonah ordered her case to be transferred to the Shah Alam High Court and set Sept 4 for mention.Cheng’s husband, Goo Eng Keng, who was initially arrested as one of the suspects in the case, was charged with causing the disappearance of evidence or giving false information to protect his wife.

The 34-year-old contractor was charged under Section 201 of the Penal Code which carries a maximum jail sentence of 10 years and a fine.He was charged with committing the offence at 12.15pm on Aug 15 at the same place.He claimed trial to the charge and the case would be mentioned on Sept 4 at the Petaling Jaya magistrate’s court.Goo was released on a RM6,000 bail.

The couple, who have two children aged four and nine months, were arrested after the body of Kunasir was found in her room at 7pm on Aug 14.

'BIBIK SETAN!'

By PEARL LEE

ON Monday, 11-month-old Mohd Naim Alma Zaadi died.
He had allegedly been abused by his Indonesian maid.
Yesterday, at the Petaling Jaya magistrate’s court, police applied for an extension on her remand order.

When the family heard that she would be there, they decided to give her a ‘reception’.
Seething with anger, they hurled abuse at the maid who cowered and covered her face as she was brought in to court.

“Bibik setan! Tak payah tutup muka tu, tak payah malu, buka jer muka tu; setan, setan!” they yelled. BIBIK setan! Tak payah tutup muka tu, tak payah malu, buka jer muka tu; setan, setan! ( Yo u ’re an evil maid. No need to cover you face, just show your evil face!”) Those were among the abuse hurled by the relatives of 11-month-old Mohd Naim Alma Zaadi to his Indonesian maid, who was remanded in connection with the toddler’s death.

Mohd Naim’s relatives came in full force at the Petaling Jaya ma- gi s t ra t e ’s court yesterday during the granting of an extension to the maid’s remand order.
They included Mohd Naim’s sib- lings, cousin, grandmother, uncle and aunt. They came at 2pm.
His parents, Norashikin Mohd Ali and Alma Zaadi Annwar, were not there as they were still griev- ing over his death.

“We are here to give her a piece of our mind. His brother and sis- ter are also here to represent their p a re nt s, ” said Mohd Naim’s grand- mother, Hanipah Abdul Jalil, 67.
Mohd Naim died on Monday at 12.30am at Subang Jaya Medical Centre after being warded the week before.

The toddler was brought to the hospital on Aug 22, when the maid called and told Norashikin that he had had two epileptic fits. However, doctors found that he had a cracked skull.
They told Norashikin that the crack was fresh and suspected that it could be due to abuse.
The maid was then remanded by police. After the toddler died, the case was reclassified as murder.

“How does one explain to a four-year-old boy that he will never see his baby brother again,” said Hanipah.
This is the predicament faced by the family in trying to explain Mohd Naim’s death to his brother, Mohd Naufal.
“He cried when he saw his mother crying after performing her evening prayers yesterday, but he does not really know what’s going on.” “He had been asking us about his brother, and we told him that God loves Mohd Naim and had taken him back,” Hanipah said.
Speaking to The Malay Mail out- side the court yesterday, Hanipah said Naim was her 16th grandchild and the youngest.

She said the last time she saw him was at her home in Kuantan, a week before he was warded.
“It breaks my heart each time I realise that I will never see my grandson again,” she added.
Mohd Naim’s aunt, Noor Adzilah Mohd Salih, 38, said Mohd Naufal and his six-year-old sister, Nurul Nasuha, were at the court because they wanted to see the hantu who had allegedly caused Mohd Naim’s death .

“I feel bad because I was the one who recommended the maid agency to my sister-in-law,” s he said.
“We are here to support the parents and the other family members who are all grieving at ho me, ” she said.

Nurul Nasuha, who was waiting anxiously for bibik’s arrival, kept asking her aunt when she would arrive. She sat up straight when she spotted the maid arriving in a police van.
The little girl was also seen yelling at the maid when she was brought to court yesterday.
Magistrate Maimoonah Aid ex- tended the remand order to Sept 5 after an application was made by the prosecuting officer.

Lebam digigit majikan

Oleh Mohd Nur Asnawi Daud dan Abdullah Wahab

SUBANG JAYA: Seorang majikan 'bertopengkan syaitan' tergamak mendera pembantu rumahnya sehingga mangsa terpaksa menerima rawatan di Hospital Serdang, kerana mengalami kecederaan teruk pada badan dan muka.Objek keras dipercayai batu serta benda tajam dikatakan menjadi 'hidangan' mangsa hampir setiap hari sejak beberapa hari lalu, walaupun hanya melakukan kesalahan kecil.Malah tidak cukup dengan penderaan itu, majikan yang berumur 40-an terbabit dikatakan turut menggigit dan menumbuk muka mangsa tanpa belas kasihan.

Penderaan itu bagaimanapun berakhir selepas jiran yang melihat kejadian itu bersimpati dengan nasib mangsa sebelum memaklumkannya kepada polis.
Berikutan itu, polis menahan seorang wanita kira-kira jam 8.30 malam kelmarin di rumahnya di Bandar Puteri Puchong, di sini, bagi membantu siasatan.

Timbalan Ketua Polis Daerah Subang Jaya, Superintendan Jaafar Md Said, berkata siasatan awal mendapati mangsa, seorang pembantu rumah warga Indonesia berumur 27 tahun, mengalami luka dan kesan lebam pada muka dan badan dipercayai didera.Menurutnya, sejurus menerima aduan polis bergegas ke rumah mangsa dan menahan wanita terbabit yang juga seorang akauntan bagi membantu siasatan.

"Berdasarkan kecederaan yang dialami, iaitu kesan lebam di mata dan mulut, kita syak dia (mangsa) didera."Mangsa kemudian dihantar ke Hospital Serdang bagi membuat pemeriksaan dan rawatan lanjut," katanya di sini, semalam.Difahamkan pembantu rumah malang itu baru setahun bekerja dengan majikan terbabit dan dia dikatakan mula didera pada 19 Ogos lalu.Jaafar berkata, perbuatan tidak berperikemanusiaan itu tidak seharusnya berlaku apatah lagi yang melakukannya adalah seorang wanita berpelajaran.

"Akauntan wanita itu kini ditahan reman bagi membantu siasatan mengikut Seksyen 324 Kanun Keseksaan," katanya.

Dalam kejadian di Puchong Perdana pada 15 Ogos lalu, seorang pembantu rumah warga asing berusia 24 tahun ditemui mati dalam bilik tidurnya dalam keadaan mencurigakan berikutan polis menemui kesan lebam pada belakang badan dan leher.

More transparency in maid insurance

Wednesday August 29, 2007

THE General Insurance Association of Singapore (GIA) has rolled out new requirements for employment agencies selling maid insurance to employers.
Such insurance, which is compulsory for anyone who wants to employ a maid, is meant to protect the maid’s welfare.

The new scheme – to boost transparency and professionalism in the insurance sales process – requires employment agencies distributing this insurance to be registered with the GIA, and have at least one staff member trained and qualified in selling the Foreign Domestic Worker (FDW) insurance.

GIA hopes that with these new rules in place, potential employers will know what type of coverage they are getting for their maids, based on the premium paid for the insurance policy.
From Nov 1, all GIA member companies will only accept FDW insurance from employment agencies that are registered as a “Trade Specific Agent” (TSA).
To be licensed as a TSA, an employment agency will need to meet certain criteria and service standards.

The TSA will need to sign an Agency Agreement with each of the insurers the agency is representing. It will also have to submit a Letter of Undertaking that the agency is only selling FDW insurance, and not other products.

The employment agency will also ensure that there is at least one staff member trained and certified to sell the insurance at its place of business.
The FDW insurance covers maids for personal accidents and injuries as well as hospitalisation expenses. – The Straits Times / Asia News Network

One maid murdered, another faces murder charge

SUBANG JAYA: One maid was murdered while another is facing a murder charge in two unrelated incidents in Subang Jaya in the past two weeks.

About 12.30am on Sunday, 11-month-old Mohd Naim Alma Zaadi, who was warded at the Subang Jaya Medical Centre for alleged abuse, succumbed to his injuries after being hospitalised for five days.An Indonesian maid had been picked up from a house in Putra Heights by police to facilitate investigations into the case.Following Naim’s death, the case has now been reclassified as murder. The maid, 32, has been remanded until Aug 29.The baby’s head was swollen and there were also signs of bruises in medical tests carried out last Wednesday.

The baby’s mother, Norashikin Mohd Ali, 37, said it was a case of "biting the hand that feeds you"."We will never forgive the maid for her actions and can only wait for judgment day when she has to answer for what she has done," the grief-stricken assistant manager said."We treated her like a member of the family."Our trust in the maid was misplaced and now, my baby paid the price for it."Her husband, businessman Alma Zaadi Annwar, 36, declined to speak to reporters during his youngest son’s burial at the Muslim cemetery in USJ 22.The couple have another 4-year-old son.

In the other case, a couple who have been detained by police in connection with the death of their Indonesian maid, are expected to be charged on Thursday.The man is expected to be charged with destroying evidence while his wife is to be charged for murder.Kunasir, 24, from Central Java, was found dead in a double-storey terrace house in Puchong Perdana last Tuesday.She was found in her room about 7pm with bruises on her neck and back.

Her employers were picked up to facilitate investigations.

Police later obtained a remand order for the contractor, in his 30s, and his 29-year-old wife from the Petaling Jaya magistrate’s court.

Selangor police chief Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar confirmed both the cases, saying that police had wrapped up investigations on the couple and would be charging them on Thursday.

"In the case of the baby’s death, we will seek an extension of the remand if we have not completed our investigations by tomorrow," he said.

Maid escapes through 22nd floor window

KUALA LUMPUR: After being allegedly abused, an Indonesian maid tried to escape from her employer.

When her employer, who employed her to take care of her 22nd floor condominium in Jalan Klang Lama here, was away with her family in Sitiawan, Perak, the maid escaped by climbing out of the window about 3pm.A neighbour, who saw her leaving the unit through the window, called a security guard.By the time the guard arrived, the maid was already on a ledge of the 17th floor.The guard, thinking she wanted to jump, persuaded her not to do it.

After some time, she relented and was brought to safety about 5pm.The 21-year-old maid from Java Tengah had been working for her employer for four months.According to the guard, the maid had marks on her lips, legs and hands."She was weak and claimed that she was abused by her employer."She also claimed that her employer had a closed-circuilt television camera in the house to monitor her every move," he said.

A police spokesman said the maid lodge a police report against her employer after she was brought to safety.She was also sent to hospital for a check-up.

Better insurance for maids

KUALA LUMPUR: In two weeks’ time, maid agencies can opt for an insurance scheme with higher coverage than currently offered.

With an annual premium of RM48 and biennial premium of RM75, the Jerneh Insurance Bhd scheme will include a 30-working day premium-free coverage upon the maid’s arrival.While other insurance companies only give out compensations upon accidental deaths, under this scheme immediate families can expect RM10,000 if the maid dies of other causes. The scheme also pays RM100 to employers for ambulance fees when the maids are badly injured and RM5,000 if the maid were to damage their property or injure someone outside their families.

Introduced with the help of the Malaysian Association of Foreign Maids Agencies, the move is to attract more maids, especially from Indonesia, to the country.

Association president Datuk Raja Zulkepley Dahalan said the percentage of registered maids coming into Malaysia from Indonesia had dropped 50 per cent this year following reports of abusive employers, irresponsible maid agents and low wages offered compared with Singapore, Thailand, the Middle East, Hong Kong and Taiwan.