Death sentence upheld for maid who killed her employer’s baby

The Indonesian maid previously claimed she dropped the child by mistake and only confessed to the murder while under duress.

ABU DHABI// A maid who murdered her employer’s four-month-old baby girl by smashing her head on a table had her death sentence upheld by the Appeals Court on Tuesday.

The court heard that S T, from Indonesia, took the baby, named Malak, from the bedroom that was fitted with CCTV cameras, then smashed the infant’s head against a wooden table.

She then returned the baby to its crib four minutes later.

S T had waited for her co-worker, the baby’s Filipina nanny, to use the bathroom before attacking the child.

She later confessed to have killed the baby to get back at the nanny, with whom she had a rivalry. She said she pictured the nanny’s face every time she looked at the baby.

Police investigations also found that at the time of the attack, S T was suffering from emotional issues after her fiance left her for another woman.

She was sentenced to death by the criminal court last September.

In the Appeals Court, S T denied deliberately harming the child, saying she had only dropped the baby by mistake.

Her lawyer argued that she was under severe emotional pressure and fatigue when she confessed.