Yakult lady, 70, dies after assault in Sengkang HDB block during delivery, man, 30, arrested & charged
She was supposed to go on a holiday the next morning but continued to deliver until the night before.
Khine Zin Htet
Kerr Puay Hian
November 16, 2024, 10:14 PM
A 70-year-old Yakult delivery woman had planned to go on a holiday on Oct. 30 morning with her daughter but decided to continue to work up to the night before.
At around 9pm on Oct. 29, on the ninth floor of Block 272B Sengkang Central, she was assaulted by a man and was sent to the hospital.
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She passed away a week later on Nov. 6.
What happened
A family member, who wrote in to Mothership, said the woman was bleeding from her head, but she was unaware of the severity of the injuries.
"Despite her traumatic state, she even tried to contact the next block 272A customer to help collect their Yakult as she couldn't continue," they said.
Passersby noticed her bloodied shirt and swollen forehead and immediately called the police and an ambulance.
Some took pictures of the blood stains at the scene.
Doctor say condition serious
The woman was rushed to Sengkang General Hospital.
Her family member said she was still able to give her statement to the police on the way to the hospital inside the ambulance despite her traumatic condition.
However, upon reaching the hospital, she reported dizziness and nausea.
A brain scan revealed her condition was serious, with doctors warning that she could become paralysed or bedridden.
She remained in a deep coma in the intensive care unit for a week, her family member shared.
Passed away
On Nov. 6, her condition worsened as she developed a fever and struggled to breathe.
Doctors informed her family that to keep her alive, they would need to insert a breathing tube through a hole in her neck.
At 5pm on that day, her family made the painful decision to unplug her breathing tube support in order not to prolong her suffering.
She was later cremated on Nov. 10.
Remembered as kind and inspiring
The victim was remembered as a "kind and inspiring" lady who raised three young children on her own after her husband's passing in 1987.
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The family member said she had worked three jobs to make ends meet and had been working for Yakult for 33 years.
He said that they have lost their loved one to a ruthless assault and hope that justice would be served.
The family also hope that such an incident won't happen again, he said, "Especially for those neighborhood delivery personnel who served us for a living."
Man charged in court
According to the charge sheets, 30-year-old Singaporean man Lim Chuan Xun was charged over the incident.
He faces a total of six charges, including a charge filed on Oct. 31 of allegedly voluntarily causing grievous hurt to the victim by punching her on the right side of the face.
The other five charges, all filed on Nov. 15, are of two charges under the Protection from Harassment Act (POHA), one charge of affray, one charge of rash act endangering the life of others, and one charge of refusing to sign a recorded statement.
Among the five charges, a POHA charge showed that he had allegedly hurled vulgarities at the victim while they were on the ninth floor. The other four charges appear unrelated to the incident and allege that he had committed crimes in the vicinity of the same block since May 2023.
According to the family member, the family of the victim attended a court hearing on Nov. 15.
He said that he heard Lim asked for a lawyer upon being notified of the victim's death and had claimed that "he didn't touch her".
He said he also heard Lim saying, "It's just a punch."
The family member understands that the police are conducting a post-mortem and are further investigating the matter.
Lim's case is scheduled to be heard again on Nov. 22.
If convicted of voluntarily causing grievous hurt, Lim faces an imprisonment term of up to 10 years and shall also be liable to a fine or caning.
