Sept 11, 2005
Victim: Filipino maid. Suspect: Filipino maid
Suspect arrested at condo where she works
Tanya Fong in Singapore
Luz Baguioro in Manila
POLICE AT THE ORCHARD MRT AREA where the victim's head and limbs were found in a bag. -- LIANHE ZAOBAO
ONE is 29 years old. The other is said to be 26. Both are believed to have come from the same region in the Philippines. Both worked here as maids and apparently knew each other.
Now, the older woman is accused of murdering her compatriot.
Plump, with a tanned complexion and rarely seen without a smile, she is to be charged today for murder in a special court sitting. She cannot be named until after she is charged.
She was arrested just after midnight yesterday, some 12 hours after several body parts of a woman were found in two bags - one near Orchard MRT station and the other in MacRitchie Reservoir.
At about 12.40am, she was seen taken away in handcuffs from her employer's eighth-floor apartment at the SunGlade condominium in Serangoon Avenue 2.
An 18cm cleaver in a red plastic bag was also taken from the flat, where the murder is believed to have taken place.
Diplomatic sources said she is married with two children and comes from the northern region of the Philippines, the same area where the victim was from.
While no one could shed any light on their relationship, it is believed the accused has been working in Singapore for several years. Her employers are an Indian couple in their 30s, who had moved into the rented apartment in June this year.
Apparently, it was a clue in one of the bags that provided the breakthrough that led to the swift arrest, Shin Min Daily News reported yesterday. The Chinese-language evening newspaper also said the body parts had been cleaned before they were disposed of, as there was little blood on them.
THE SUNGLADE CONDOMINIUM in Serangoon Avenue 2 where the murder is believed to have taken place. Neighbours say the suspect was "friendly". -- CHEW SENG KIM
Stunned residents at SunGlade said yesterday they could not believe a murder could have taken place at their 18-month-old condo with eight high-rise blocks.
Many have seen the suspect. About 1.65m tall, she has long black hair that goes down her back, just like that of the victim.
Said a neighbour who lives on the same floor: 'She always smiles back when I see her sweeping the corridor in the morning. Once in a while she would bring two of her friends home. They have long hair and they always come about 8pm.'
Her employers, who are permanent residents here, have no children and are rarely seen by their neighbours.
Said a resident on another floor who spoke on condition of anonymity: 'I seldom see the couple but when I do, they are very friendly.
'The man travels quite a bit I think, because I see him going out sometimes with a trolley bag and he would return after many days.'
The couple were not home all of yesterday. Neighbours told The Sunday Times that they had not heard or seen anything suspicious.
One told the police, who knocked on her door just after the arrest, that she did not hear any screams coming from the apartment.
Both the police and officials of the Philippine Embassy declined to disclose the identity of the victim, as her next-of-kin in Philippines has yet to be contacted.
tanya@sph.com.sg