Mother, daughter held for allegedly abusing maid in Sitiawan

The maid told police she was beaten with an iron rod if she refused to do her work.

LUMUT: Manjung police have rescued an Indonesian maid, suspected of being locked up, fed with food scraps and not paid her salary for the past two years by her employers.

Manjung district police chief Nor Omar Sappi said the 44-year-old victim was picked up after police received a tip-off and raided a house in Sitiawan near here at 2.30pm yesterday.

He said in the raid, police detained a 48-year-old woman and her 25-year-old daughter.

“The maid claimed she was locked inside the house and had been forced to work round the clock without pay for two years. She said she was hit with a metal rod if she was reluctant to do work.

“She also claimed she was only given leftovers to eat and an improper place to sleep,” he said in a statement here today.

Nor Omar said police discovered the victim came to Malaysia in 2018 through Pasir Gudang, Johor, with an agent, before being sent to the suspect’s house to work as a maid.

He said both suspects did not have any criminal records and their urine tests came back negative.

“We have obtained a 21-day interim protection order (IPO) from the Seri Manjung Court. She will be sent to a shelter home after completing treatment.

“Both suspects have been remanded for four days, starting today. The case is being investigated under Section 12 of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007,” he said. - FMT