4-7-2023 (SINGAPORE) In a shocking case that sent shockwaves through the city-state, a maid has been handed a life sentence on Tuesday (Jul 4) for the brutal murder of her employer’s 70-year-old mother-in-law. The victim was found with 26 stab wounds, marking a horrific crime.
The maid, identified as Zin Mar Nwe, arrived in Singapore in January 2018, falsely stating her age as 23 on her passport. However, a bone-age test conducted by a hospital later revealed that she was only 17 years old at the time of her arrival.
Investigations uncovered that her agent had instructed her to declare an older age when applying for the job. Due to her age at the time of the crime, the court determined that the only available sentence was life imprisonment.
Under the Criminal Procedure Code, individuals who were under 18 at the time of the offense cannot be sentenced to death.
Zin Mar Nwe, originally from Myanmar, committed the heinous act in June 2018 after the elderly woman threatened to send her back to her agent. The victim was watching television when the maid mercilessly stabbed her 26 times until she succumbed to her injuries. After the crime, the maid collected her belongings, washed the knife, changed her clothes, and fled the scene.
She was later apprehended by authorities at her maid agency.
During the trial, Justice Andre Maniam dismissed Zin Mar Nwe’s partial defense of diminished responsibility. The maid’s legal team argued that she was in a dissociative state during the incident.
Justice Maniam ruled that the offender had acted out of anger towards the deceased and was fully aware of her actions, even providing the police with a detailed account of the stabbing.
The judge acknowledged that the victim had hit Zin Mar Nwe on certain occasions, possibly to gain her attention or reprimand her, and that the maid had retaliated when accidentally hurting the victim. However, these incidents did not justify the extreme violence that led to the tragic loss of life.
The prosecution did not oppose the sentence of life imprisonment. Zin Mar Nwe’s defense lawyer, Christopher Bridges, who represented her under the Legal Assistance Scheme for Capital Offenses, pleaded against the death penalty for his client. He pointed to Zin Mar Nwe’s diary entries, in which she expressed longing for her parents and boyfriend, and her sadness due to memories of home.
In the diary, she described her chest feeling “tight” and the challenge of being away from home for the first time.
Before delivering the sentence, Justice Maniam inquired about a letter sent by Zin Mar Nwe to the court. In the letter, she pleaded for another chance. Mr. Bridges clarified that he had explained the situation to his client and advised her to address her concerns with any instructing counsel during the appeals process.
According to Section 300(c) of the law, the penalty for murder is death or life imprisonment. As Zin Mar Nwe is a woman, she is exempt from caning as part of her sentence.
