Girl who was killed less than a year after being reunited with family was not under care of social agencies: MSF

SINGAPORE: A girl who was killed by her father less than a year after she was reunited with her birth parents from foster care was not under the care of any social agencies at the time of her death, the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) said on Thursday (Feb 15) in response to CNA’s queries.

Umaisyah was two-and-a-half years old when she was killed in March 2014. Her parents burnt her body and hid her remains in a pot, and her death went undiscovered for more than five years.

The authorities found out about her demise after her mother’s friends reported the contents of the pot to the police after visiting the flat.

Questions were asked about Umaisyah’s care after the case came to light, with social workers, MSF and the Ministry of Education (MOE) having made contact with the family multiple times over the years. 

In response to CNA’s queries, an MSF spokesperson said Umaisyah’s parents “deliberately concealed” her death in their interactions with government and social service agencies. 

MOE told CNA that they had “no reason to suspect” her parents’ earlier accounts and the ministry had sent letters as well as made home visits and phone calls.

Since Umaisyah’s death, MSF has “reviewed and strengthened information sharing and coordination protocols” on monitoring vulnerable children, said the ministries.

This includes regular safety checks after reunification. MSF has also established protocols to guide partner agencies to trace a child’s whereabouts if the child is reported missing or has not been seen in the community.

“The safety and well-being of children is MSF's priority, and we are continuously working with our partners to learn from past cases and improve our processes,” said the spokesperson.

MOE added that it will continue to work closely with MSF and other agencies to ensure the well-being of children.

MULTIPLE CONTACTS OVER YEARS

Umaisyah was only three to four months old when she was placed in foster care in November 2011. Her father was in a drug rehabilitation centre and her mother was assessed to be unable to take care of her.

In June 2013, she was returned to the care of her birth parents. By this time, her parents had already started abusing their other children.

The court heard that Umaisyah’s father would hit her with a belt and hanger, slap her face and leg, cane her palm, punch her thigh and pinch her.

Her foster mother continued to visit the two-year-old girl, noticing that she had become more withdrawn and had lost weight.

About nine months after she was returned to her parents’ care, her father killed her in March 2014. Her parents tried to cover their tracks, placing her body in a metal pot and setting her on fire.

After sealing the pot, they hid it in their home. They lied to others about the girl’s whereabouts, claiming she had returned to her foster parents or that she was being taken care of by relatives in Malaysia.

More than two years after Umaisyah’s killing, the man was admitted to a drug rehabilitation centre in October 2016. This was his second stint.

In 2017, case workers made five unannounced home visits. During the visits, no adult was at home and the children were left to fend for themselves.

In one of the visits in November 2017, the case worker waited for the mother to come home and told her she should not leave her children unattended. By this time, Umaisyah’s father had become estranged from his wife and no longer lived in the flat.

In the years after her killing, she was still known to the authorities. Between September and December 2017, MOE contacted Umaisyah’s parents to check why she had not registered for Primary 1. 

Her mother lied and said she had been taken away by her father. Meanwhile, her father claimed the girl was being taken care of by his parents in Malaysia and that he was unaware of her whereabouts.

In December of that year, case workers again made home visits and found the children to be unsupervised. 

In January 2018, the couple’s eldest son and another child attended only two days of school. 

On Feb 9, 2018, during another house visit, a Child Protective Service (CPS) officer noticed four children alone at home. The eldest son said they only had some sausages for food and asked for water as they had not had any since the day before.

Police were called to remove the children from the flat. The mother met MSF officers that evening, but lied that she only had six children, deliberately omitting Umaisyah.

Later that month, she again lied that she only had six children, again leaving out Umaisyah.

More than a year and a half later, in August 2019, the girl's uncle, who was staying at the flat while Umaisyah’s mother was in prison, looked in the pot even though he had been told by his sister not to touch it.

Umaisyah’s killing finally came to light in September 2019. After a court hearing, the uncle showed the contents of the pot to his sister’s friends, who reported it to the police.

In September last year, her father was jailed for more than 21 years and given 18 strokes of the cane. 

Her mother was given 14 years’ jail for abusing her children and perverting justice by covering up Umaisyah’s death.

WHY DID HER DEATH GO UNNOTICED?

MSF said Umaisyah was placed in foster care because her father was incarcerated and her mother, the sole caregiver, had run into financial difficulties.

At this point, there was no history of abuse by the parents.

She was reunited with her parents after their financial and housing situations had stabilised, said the ministry spokesperson.

“The parents were assessed to be able to provide safe care for her and positive parent-child interactions were observed during contact sessions and home leave,” said the spokesperson. 

After Umaisyah's reunification with her parents, CPS referred the family to a Family Service Centre (FSC) for support as "there were no remaining child protection concerns that required statutory intervention".

"However, the parents subsequently defaulted appointments with the FSC and rejected services provided by the FSC," added the MSF spokesperson.

Umaisyah was not under the care of MSF or other social service agencies when her father killed her. 

Her parents concealed her death and “consistently reported” that she was under the care of relatives, including those residing overseas.

The spokesperson added that the nature of child abuse is that it may not be easy to detect, especially when there is active concealment and evasion by parents.

The Education Ministry said that between September and December 2017, it had sent two letters, made two home visits and had follow-up phone calls with the parents. 

“The parents subsequently became uncontactable. MOE had no reason to suspect the parents’ earlier accounts of Umaisyah’s whereabouts, and continued to work with other agencies to contact the family and locate Umaisyah,” said MOE.

It added that it “seeks to locate and reach out” to all children who do not register for Primary 1 as well as their parents. This is to provide them with counselling and guidance.

It also works with other government agencies and community organisations to provide such support where necessary.

MSF said that case officers now work with community partners to conduct safety checks at least once a month for 12 months or more after a child is reunited with their birth parent.

“The exact frequency and form of such checks, and duration of support would depend on the case circumstances and needs of the family,” said the spokesperson. 

“For cases that have been transferred to community agencies for continued intervention, community agencies are expected to consult CPS immediately if there are any safety concerns, or if parents refuse to engage and work with the agencies.”