A suicidal mother who put a plastic bag over her son’s head and tied him up while he was sleeping has pleaded guilty to mistreating a child and now awaits sentencing.
Mainland-born Cheung Yum-sum, 43, told her seven-year-old son on Oct. 11 last year that she wanted to end her life. She then waited for him to fall asleep, tied up his arms and legs and put a bag over his head.
According to the SCMP, she removed the bag after the boy woke and complained that he couldn’t breathe.
The case only came to light because the boy told his foster family, who were taking care of him when Cheung was subsequently injured and off work.
Cheung was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and mild depression after she was charged, with her defence team telling the court about a number of traumas she has suffered.
Hong Kong’s Eastern Court heard how Cheung was the victim of rape, which left her with a daughter; had two sons with an abusive husband before they separated in 2005; and finally had the seven-year-old with a boyfriend who left her in 2013.
SCMP reports that she once wrapped wires around her legs in the hope of expediting her application for public housing on the grounds of being disabled.
She will be sentenced on June 3.
Photo: Nicely Inhibited via Flickr
