S’pore teacher, 45, repeatedly used pen to jab head of young boy with special needs, gets 18 months’ jail

A 45-year-old early intervention teacher at a kindergarten was sentenced to 18 months’ jail after using a pen to repeatedly jab a six-year-old boy with special needs.

She pleaded guilty to one charge under the Children and Young Persons Act and was sentenced on Jun. 22, Lianhe Zaobao reported.

A gag order was imposed to protect the victim’s identity.

Special needs

The accused was an early intervention teacher at a kindergarten with about 10 years’ experience in early childhood education.

The boy, who was diagnosed with autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and delayed language development, was a student in the kindergarten's early intervention programme designed for children with special needs.

The accused was the boy’s form teacher.

Pen

On Nov. 16, 2022, at about 3pm, the boy walked towards a table with stationery on it.

The accused grabbed a pen from the table and rushed towards the boy.

She then repeatedly jabbed his head with the pen.

The boy attempted to dodge her attacks and knelt on one knee.

He then fell backwards with his legs kicking.

The accused did not stop and continued to jab the boy repeatedly.

She only stopped after the boy started rubbing his head many times.

She then left him on the floor mat and went away.

Cover up

The accused attempted to cover up the incident.

On the day of the incident, she sent photos of the boy’s injuries to a group chat that included his parents.

She falsely claimed that the boy injured himself with a toy.

The accused also called the boy’s mother and repeated the same account.

However, the boy’s mother did not believe the accused’s claims and requested the kindergarten’s principal to investigate the incident.

The accused's actions were discovered after the classroom’s surveillance footage was reviewed.

The principal informed the boy’s mother, and a police report was lodged on the following day, on Nov. 17, 2022.

The accused was also dismissed from the kindergarten on the same day.

Injuries

The boy was taken to the hospital for an examination.

He suffered two abrasions on his scalp and another abrasion on his left brow ridge.

He was given nine days of medical leave.

Duties

The prosecution argued that the accused’s role as an early intervention teacher and the boy’s form teacher meant she had a duty to care for him.

However, she attacked the boy unprovoked and tried to cover up her actions.

The boy not only suffered head injuries, but also frequently cried for no reason after the incident, and his sleep and appetite were affected.

The prosecution further argued that the accused repeatedly delayed court proceedings and did not plead guilty at the earliest possible time.

The prosecution urged the judge to sentence her to 23 to 27 months’ imprisonment.

The accused's lawyer argued that the accused was a first-time offender with no prior complaints, citing her good track record before the incident.

A lighter sentence was sought, citing the accused's emotionally distressed state at the time of the incident as her father was ill.