Hong Kong mum jailed for 2½ years for scalding children with hot water
- The 37-year-old woman scalded her son, seven, and daughter, 10, with hot water on three occasions last year at their Sha Tin flat
- Judge Katherine Lo warns her against further abusing her children, and also tells the father he may be prosecuted if he fails in his parental duties
A 37-year-old mother has been jailed in Hong Kong for 2½ years for scalding her children with hot water three times in as many days last year.
In sentencing the woman at the District Court on Tuesday, Judge Katherine Lo Kit-yee dismissed her claim that she was mentally incapacitated when she attacked her children.
Instead, she found the defendant “a stubborn lady with limited insight into her own problems”, as the woman had blamed the act on financial and marital woes.
Lo also warned the mother against further abuse, noting that despite her clear criminal record, information available with social workers showed she was previously suspected to have mistreated her two children on at least two occasions.
Even though the children were found with old scars and bruises over their bodies, neither their father nor people who had regular contact with them prevented or reported the suspected abuse, the judge said.
“This court urges those responsible to prevent these vulnerable children from being abused, and to protect and safeguard their well-being. They should more readily come forward and prevent tragedies happening to these children,” Lo said.
