SINGAPORE -
Molested four times by her employer in late 2016, an Indonesian maid fled and went straight to the Manpower Ministry in Havelock Road.
But it was way past office hours and the 24-year-old was forced to spend the night at a nearby bus stop. In the morning, she returned and informed the ministry's officials of her ordeal.
On Tuesday (June 5),
Francis Lim Boon Liang, 49, a married sales manager who is a father of two, pleaded guilty in a district court to two counts of outraging the maid's modesty.
Two other molestation charges will be taken into consideration during sentencing, which is expected to take place on July 13.
The court heard that the maid had arrived in Singapore in September 2016 and Lim employed her two months later, on Nov 24.
He preyed on her just days after she started work.
Said Deputy Public Prosecutor Nicholas Lai: "The victim was never in any sort of romantic relationship with the accused... Their relationship was strictly that of an employer-employee one.
"The accused as well as his other family members did not have any issues with the victim's quality of work."
DPP Lai told District Judge Marvin Bay that the
maid was alone in the kitchen with Lim when he asked her for a kiss. His son was then in the living room while his daughter was in her bedroom.
When she refused, he molested her.
Said DPP Lai: "The victim felt angry, helpless and embarrassed... However, she did not report the matter to the police immediately as she still respected the accused as her employer and did not want to cause any problems with the accused and his wife."
Lim molested her two more times in November.
On Dec 3, 2016, she was in a flat belonging to Lim's mother when he molested her for the fourth time.
The following night, at around 10pm, she ran away while Lim's mother was asleep.
Lim, who is represented by lawyer Diana Ngiam, is out on bail of $5,000.
For each count of molestation, he can be jailed for up to two years and fined or caned.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singap...ing-indonesian-maid-repeatedly-causing-her-to