Woman, 20, in home punches, kicks and bangs teen girl's head on floor until she fractures nose

Shaffiq Alkhatib
The Straits Times
June 16, 2023

Being sent to a home failed to deter a woman from committing violent acts when she brazenly attacked a 17-year-old girl for around four minutes in front of two other residents.

The 20-year-old offender rained blows on the teenager, grabbed the girl by her hair and repeatedly banged her head on the floor, causing several clumps of hair to be pulled out.

She continued assaulting the teenager when a staff member arrived at the scene, and the attack stopped only when the worker pulled the victim away.

The teenager was later found with injuries including a fracture to her nose.

Her assailant pleaded guilty to an assault charge on Friday.

Details about the offender, the home and the victim cannot be disclosed due to a gag order.

Court documents did not reveal why the assailant had been sent to the home, but the attack took place around 9.20am on Jan 22, 2023, after she got into a disagreement with the victim.

The offender suddenly attacked the teen in front of two other residents, punching and kicking the victim’s head several times.

The victim tried to shield herself from the blows by using her arms to cover her face. Her assailant then grabbed her hair and banged her head against the floor.

Even though the offender told the witnesses not to interfere, one of them managed to use a nearby intercom to alert the facility about what was happening.

The staff member, who arrived at the scene soon after, tried but failed to persuade the offender to stop attacking the teenager.

Due to an undisclosed reason, the offender briefly walked away from the victim and the staff member quickly pulled her away.

The offender was later escorted out of the room and was placed in isolation for a few days.

The victim was taken to hospital, where she was found with injuries including a bruised scalp and a fractured nose.

She was given three days of outpatient medical leave and the police were alerted on Jan 25.

On Friday, the court called for reports to assess her assailant’s suitability for probation and reformative training.

Young people under reformative training are detained in a centre and made to follow a strict regimen that can include foot drills and counselling.

She is expected to be sentenced on July 7.