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SINGAPORE – A 56-year-old woman living on a multi-million dollar estate in Sentosa Cove is contesting claims that she abused two of her domestic workers.
Tan Lee Hoon was in court on Tuesday (December 8) at the start of a trial in which he faces eight counts of willfully causing harm to Filipino citizens.
Both victims were employed by Tan’s husband, Sim Guan Huat, 59, who is currently facing charges related to the illegal employment of foreign nationals, including one of the servants, Ms. Joan Lozares Lizardo, 33.
Three of the charges Tan faces involve Ms. Lizardo, while the remaining five involve Ms. Jenefer Vegafria Arangote, 39 years old.
Tan allegedly pinched Ms. Arangote in the stomach, arm, thigh and chest on several occasions in September 2018 at her home.
He is also said to have kicked Ms. Lizardo in the chest and hit his head in October 2018, and also hit his torso with a stick in another case that year.
Court documents indicate that Tan’s alleged acts of abuse came to light after Ms. Arangote’s friend, another domestic worker, called the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), which in turn informed the police on October 17, 2018.
Tan is represented by attorneys Sunil Sudheesan and Diana Ngiam of Quahe Woo & Palmer LLC.
Records from the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority show that Sim is the owner of a company that deals with vehicle tires and batteries, as well as a director in three other companies.
He faces charges under the Employment of Foreign Labor Act, according to court records.
Among other things, he is charged with employing Ms. Lizardo without a valid work pass from October 23, 2015 to December 1, 2016.
He also allegedly conspired with another person in 2015 to falsely state, in an application to the MOM for Ms. Lizardo’s work permit, that she was to be employed in another residence rather than her home.
Sim’s case is expected to be heard in court on Thursday.
On Tuesday, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Lynn Tan testified that she was among a group of police officers present at Tan’s home on October 17, 2018.
She had spoken with the victims at the time, who claimed that Tan abused them in various places in the home, the officer said.
The maids were taken to Alexandra Hospital where they were examined by doctors, but they were not required to be protected.
ASP Tan said that although there were several closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed in the house, there were no images stored on the CCTV server as its hard drive was missing.
Tan’s trial is expected to resume on Wednesday, with one of the victims taking the stand.
If found guilty, she can be jailed for up to three years, or a fine of up to $ 7,500, or both for each crime.
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