CNA – Suspecting that her elderly employer was suffering from dementia as she displayed memory loss, a maid in Singapore used her employer’s debit card to withdraw money for herself.
Over about a year, Indonesian national Mimin withdrew SGD18,710 from her 71-year-old employer’s bank account and remitted most of it home.
Mimin, who goes by one name, was sentenced to five months’ jail yesterday. The 39-year-old woman turned up in court with luggage in tow.
She pleaded guilty to one charge of theft by servant. Another two charges were considered in sentencing.
The court heard that Mimin began working for the victim and the victim’s bedridden husband in October 2020 for a monthly salary of SGD670 to SGD690.
Her tasks included caring for the elderly couple, cleaning the house and accompanying the victim to the hospital and supermarket.
While caring for the victim, Mimin realised that the victim had symptoms of memory impairment and formed the impression that the victim suffered from dementia.
On one occasion, the victim was withdrawing money and Mimin caught a glimpse of the PIN that she entered. The maid memorised the number and took note that the victim kept her debit card in her handbag.
As the victim’s memory deteriorated over time, the victim entrusted Mimin with withdrawing money for her on occasion. When Mimin withdrew money for her employer, she would also take some money for herself. She also stole the card on occasion to withdraw money.
Over 46 occasions between January 2021 and December 2022, she withdrew a total of SGD18,710 from the victim’s bank account and remitted most of it home, except for SGD30 that she used to buy a pair of earrings for herself.
On February 11, 2022, the victim’s daughter used the debit card to withdraw money on the victim’s behalf. She realised that there was a balance of about SGD100 in the account and felt that something was amiss, as she remembered there was a balance of about SGD13,000 as of August 2021.
She told her brother what she discovered and they discussed the matter before lodging a police report three days later. Mimin initially maintained in her first two police statements that she neither stole the debit card nor any money. She claimed that her employer had voluntarily given her the card and authorised her to withdraw money.
She said she either passed the money to her employer or used it to buy groceries on her employer’s instructions.
The maid only admitted her crimes in her third police statement, after she was confronted with remittance slips recovered through investigations.
