Sengkang 'Yakult Auntie', 70, who died after alleged assault, juggled 3 jobs to raise her children

The 70-year-old woman, who passed away after an alleged assault in Sengkang, used to juggle three jobs to bring up her three children.

Widow at 33

Her eldest son told Shin Min Daily News that his late mother, Jasmine, became a widow when she was just 33.

At that time, she was working in an electronics factory in Ang Mo Kio.

In order to raise her children who were aged under one, four, and six at that time, she sewed and tailored clothes, and even worked as a cleaner.

In 1991, she took on a third job selling Yakult.

She would sew clothes in the morning, clean in the afternoon, and deliver Yakult at night.

Her son told the Chinese media that before she passed, Jasmine was of the view that she had a hard life since childhood, and if anything should happen to her, her family should let her go.

It was this conviction that informed her family's decision to remove her life support when her condition deteriorated in the hospital following her alleged assault.

Customers were her priority

Jasmine's eldest son also told the Chinese media that his mother was very focused on her work as a Yakult Auntie, and her regular customers were her priority.

Whenever she went overseas for a vacation, she would make it a point to return within a week.

Before she left, she would tell her customers to place their orders in advance.

Even if a customer purchased only one packet of Yakult drinks, she would deliver it to their doorstep.

Even at the ripe age of 70, Jasmine would spend four days a week delivering Yakult to her customers.

Her routine involved leaving the house at 7pm and returning home just before 9:30pm.

"My mother never argued with others. She would consider it a blessing even if she suffered losses. The way she endured her hardships actually inspired me. No matter what kind of difficulties I encountered, I know I can get through them," said her son.

Her family said they wished more witnesses can come forward and shed light on the incident that took Jasmine's life.

Man charged in court

According to charge sheets, a 30-year-old Singaporean man, Lim Chuan Xun, was charged over the incident.

He is being charged with allegedly voluntarily causing grievous hurt to the victim by punching Jasmine on the right side of her face.

Another charge under the Protection from Harassment Act (POHA) alleged that Lim had hurled vulgarities at Jasmine while they were on the ninth floor of Block 272B Sengkang Central.

Jasmine's family members said Lim claimed that "he didn't touch her" and insisted that it was "just a punch".

In addition, Lim faces another four charges that appear unrelated to the incident.

The charges pertain to other crimes he had allegedly committed in the vicinity of the same block since May 2023.

Lim's case is scheduled to be heard again on Nov. 22.

If convicted of voluntarily causing grievous hurt, Lim faces an imprisonment term of up to 10 years and will also be liable to a fine or caning.

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