Police have arrested the aunt of a five-year-old boy who was
found dead in a flat in Teck Whye estate in western Singapore on
Sunday.
It is understood that the victim, Muhamad Irfan, and his seven-year-old elder brother had been
under the care of their aunt Sapiah Awang, 47, for about two
months.
The boys' parents and three older siblings are believed to be in
jail for drug-related offences. Thrice a month, the aunt would take
the boys to visit the relatives in prison, reported
The Straits Times.
In the early hours of Sunday morning, Irfan was found lying
motionless on a mattress in the middle of the living room of the
two-room flat in Teck Whye.
It is believed that Sapiah was later arrested on the same day
for ill treatment of a child or young
person.
According to friends and neighbours, the woman — who is employed
as a dishwasher — would tie the hands of the two boys while she was
at work, to prevent them from creating mischief. Both boys also
stopped attending school beginning this
year.
Neighbour Ramlah Mohamad, 47, said that the aunt, whom she has
known for around seven years, told her before that she could not
cope with taking care of the children as they were "playful" and
that she was tired and stressed.
Ramlah added that she was with the woman at the coffee shop till
about 1.30am on Sunday. However, the aunt left later than her, and
upon reaching home, discovered that the boy had stopped
breathing.
It is reported that, at that time, a 72-year-old family friend
of the aunt — who had been staying there for a month — was also in
the flat. The man, who declined to be named, said he would cook
simple meals and feed the children.
"That particular afternoon, I untied their hands to give them
water and then went to sleep. The next thing I knew, she woke me
up, screaming," he added.
Both he and neighbour Mohd Atan, 82, claimed they saw blood on
the boy's genitals when paramedics were
checking the body, as well as bruises.
Marks, which Mohd Atan described as "blue-black", were also
found on Irfan's wrists. It is understood that he also suffered
injuries and bruises on other parts of his body, believed to have
been caused by rough play.
However, it is not known whether those injuries are related to
his death.
A police spokesman had previously said that the police received
a call at 2.15am, informing them that boy was lying in his flat and
could not be woken up. He was pronounced dead at 2.35am.
Investigations are going on and the case has been classified as an
unnatural death.
-- Yahoo!