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Passing of Sumo Salad owner classified as unnatural death

The owner of eatery Sumo Salad has passed away, shortly after alleging that an employee had made a fraudulent work injury claim against her business.

In two Facebook posts last Friday (18 July), Ms Jane Lee claimed the employee had staged an injury to extort money from business owners.

Source: Jane Lee on Facebook

Employee claimed to have fallen while disposing of rubbish

In her first post, Ms Lee said the employee in question had approached her for employment.

Two days before her contract ended, she was supposed to leave work early but “deliberately stayed back”, Ms Lee claimed, adding:

It became clear to me that the accident was premeditated, likely as an attempt to file a false work injury claim.

That day, the employee claimed to have slipped and fallen on the escalator while disposing of rubbish.

Source: Google Maps

Employee exaggerated her condition to doctors, alleged Sumo Salad owner

However, Ms Lee alleged that the employee exaggerated her condition to doctors, limping in order to feign serious injury.

She had observed this when she accompanied the employee to several medical appointments, she said.

Ms Lee also claimed to have personally witnessed the employee moving around normally when taking part in actions like cooking and walking, but “dramatically” changing her behaviour when others were looking.

The business owner said she had video footage on her phone that contradicted the injury claims.

Scheme to extort money from small businesses, says Jane Lee

Ms Lee suspected that the employee had orchestrated a scheme together with her husband to “exploit injury claims for compensation”.

Targeting small businesses, they would allegedly find one without proper insurance coverage and extort money by instilling fear in them, she said.

Businesses that are insured are not spared either, and they would allegedly concoct serious injuries such as permanent disabilities to get higher payouts, Ms Lee added.

She also claimed that the couple did this “potentially with the assistance of a legal firm” that coached them.

Ms Lee said she was “extremely unfortunate” and “deeply saddened” for herself, her husband, and her dedicated staff to be targeted because of a gap in their insurance coverage, adding:

I never imagined that someone could act with such deceit simply for the sake of money.

Source: Jane Lee on Facebook

She apologises to staff & family

In her second post minutes later, Ms Lee urged the authorities to investigate the case thoroughly, fearing for other alleged victims.

She also apologised and thanked her staff individually, saying that she had transferred money to one of them.

She asked her friends and fellow business owners to share her message to prevent similar cases from happening to others.

Lastly, addressing her family and children, she said:

I’m truly sorry that I couldn’t find the strength to face this battle on my own. I’ve written a personal letter that you’ll find on my laptop.

Sumo Salad owner passed away on 19 July

According to an image being circulated across Facebook, Ms Lee passed away on Saturday (19 July), a day after her final post.

Her wake is ongoing at St. Joseph’s Church in Bukit Timah, with the cremation at Mandai Crematorium on Wednesday (23 July).

Source: Facebook

In response to queries from MS News, the Singapore Police Force confirmed that investigations are ongoing into Ms Lee’s passing, with the case classified as an unnatural death.

MOM investigating alleged fraudulent work injury claim

In a statement posted on Facebook late on Monday (21 July) night, the Ministry of Manpower extended its deepest condolences to Ms Lee’s family.

It said that it has been looking into an alleged fraudulent work injury claim made by an employee of EatGreen Pte. Ltd. — the operator of Sumo Salad.

The employee was covered under the Work Injury Compensation Act. MOM is working with the insurer to assess the validity of the case.

Before Ms Lee’s death, the ministry was in communication with her, with investigations ongoing, it noted, adding:

MOM will not hesitate to take parties found culpable for abusing the WIC system to task. Employers can approach MOM for help if they have concerns over fraudulent claims by their employees.

Also read: Gig Workers To Receive Compulsory CPF Payments & Work Injury Compensation From 2024

Gig Workers To Receive Compulsory CPF Payments & Work Injury Compensation From 2024

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