SINGAPORE: A 33-year-old woman has been arrested for her suspected involvement in a case of ill-treating children, said the police on Tuesday (Aug 29).
The police said they received a report at around 1pm on Monday, pointing to videos circulating online of a preschool teacher allegedly abusing young children.
Three videos of the teacher’s interactions with children at what appeared to be Kinderland Preschool @ Woodlands Mart had surfaced on social media, showing her handling the kids roughly.
In two videos, the teacher can be seen trying to force children to drink water by holding their heads back or putting them on the floor and pouring the liquid into their mouths. In a third clip, the teacher is seen shouting and hitting a child multiple times with a book.
The preschool is located within the Sembawang West ward of Member of Parliament Poh Li San, who wrote on Facebook that she was assisting affected parents and children.
“Such unprofessional and harsh actions to the poor children cannot be condoned,” she said.
The teacher has since been fired and the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA), which oversees the preschool sector, is also looking into the matter.
The police on Tuesday said that officers established the woman’s identity through follow-up investigations and arrested her.
She will be charged in court on Wednesday with the offence of ill-treatment of a child or young person. If found guilty, she faces a jail term of up to eight years, a fine of up to S$8,000 (US$5,900), or both.