SINGAPORE - Angry that the child she was taking care of could not stop crying, a domestic helper hit the boy multiple times with a clothes hanger, causing him to suffer bruises on his body.

The boy, who was about 19 months old at the time of the incident last April, tried to move away but could not escape her beating as she had held him by his hand.

She later lied to the child's parents that the boy had fallen down.

War War Myint Aung pleaded guilty on Thursday (Feb 6), which is her 27th birthday, to one count of ill-treating a child, and was sentenced to six months' jail.

The child cannot be identified due to a gag order.

According to court documents, the Myanmar helper had been working at the child's home since November 2018. Her duties included taking care of the boy and his elder brother.

On April 12 last year, the child was left at home in her care after his parents and brother left the house at around 7am.

The boy started crying after he was fed lunch, when War War Myint Aung was washing the dishes.

She tried to make the child stop crying by carrying him twice and changing his diapers, but to no avail.

Angry that he would not stop crying, she took a clothes hanger from the toilet, held the boy by his hand and hit him multiple times with the hanger.

He tried to escape the beating, but she continued to hit him with the hanger. After she was done beating him, she placed the hanger in the balcony.

When the child's mother returned home after work, she discovered bruises on the boy's right cheek.

When she asked about the injury, War War Myint Aung lied that the child had fallen down in the master bedroom while she was in the toilet.

The parents later found more injuries on the boy's back, and confronted the maid, who maintained her lie that the child had fallen down.

The child's father then called the police, who arrested her.

Court documents also stated that she admitted beating the victim with the hanger so as to make him stop crying.

In sentencing, District Judge Marvin Bay said it was obvious the child would not be able to understand that War War Myint Aung had been stressed by his crying.

He concluded that the only conceivable basis for her beating the boy was to vent her frustration over his continued crying.

He added that there was a possibility that the child would have not just physical injuries, but also emotional and psychological scars from her abuse.

"A deterrent sentence is called for in this instance to ensure that all caregivers give pause before resorting to inflicting violence on young children under their care," he said.

For ill-treating a child, War War Myint Aung could have been sentenced to jail for up to eight years, or a maximum fine of $8,000, or both.