The 16-year-old who lived with her family on the 10th floor was found with two fatal stab wounds in the bedroom.
Neighbours had noticed the Indonesian helper looking despondent and pacing outside the flat late last Saturday night.
Five days later, she was found in a daze, sitting in a bedroom in her employer's executive flat in Tampines.
The body of her employer's 16-year-old daughter lay beside her. In the bathroom, a bloodied knife stained the floor.
Neighbours had earlier heard a blood-curdling scream, followed by cries, coming from the flat.
They later found out that an Indonesian domestic helper, 28, had allegedly stabbed the teenager twice and then watched as she bled to death.
The murder happened early on Thursday afternoon in the 10th-storey unit at Block 856, Tampines Street 82, a short fiveminute walk from Tampines Mall.
A neighbour who lives on the 15th storey, who declined to be named, told The New Paper: "The girl's parents had returned to the flat at about 12.30pm. When they walked in, they saw their daughter lying on the floor and the maid sitting in a daze."
DEAD
The parents ran down to a unit one storey below to seek help from their friend.
They remained downstairs while the friend and his Indonesian maid rushed up to their flat to help the girl, but realised that she was dead.
The neighbour from the 15th storey said that he later found out what happened from the friend's maid, who declined to be interviewed when approached by TNP.
He said: "The friend's maid tried to speak to the other maid but she didn't say anything. She just kept quiet throughout." Even when she was asked repeatedly to explain the incident, the maid kept silent and just stared into space.
FATHER INCONSOLABLE
By then, the victim's mother had fainted and her father was in tears and inconsolable.
"When the police arrived, the father was still crying and wanted to go back to the flat. But the police had sealed the place and wouldn't let him in," the neighbour said.
The victim was later pronounced dead by paramedics who arrived at about 1pm. The maid was arrested. The police, who said they received a call at 12.57pm, have classified the case as murder.
Investigations are ongoing.
EARLY SIGNS OF DISTRESS
Other neighbours said the maid had shown signs of distress as early as a year ago.
A domestic helper living on the sixth storey said she had heard from the ninth-storey maid that the murder suspect was suicidal almost a year ago.
"She (the suspect) told her friend that she wanted to jump down because her employer wanted to call the police. When asked why, she just kept quiet," said the 37-year-old Indonesian helper, who did not know the suspect well.
A 58-year-old woman living in the opposite block, who wanted to be known only as Rose, said: "Last Saturday, she was just standing there outside her flat and looking troubled. "Her head was down and she was staring at the ground. It was about 11pm and she was outside for almost 20 minutes." Most neighbours did not know the family well or were not even aware that they had a domestic helper.
KEPT TO THEMSELVES
A neighbour who lives on the 10th storey said: "The family moved in about four years ago and have another child, a son, in primary school. They kept to themselves, we would just nod and say hi."
At 8.30pm on Thursday, the victim's parents were still in their friend's flat. Many visitors streamed into the flat throughout the afternoon but they declined to comment or identify themselves. The police cordoned part of the 10th storey until about 7pm.
A young man who lived on the same storey said: "The maid looked normal. You couldn't tell just by looking. "This is a peaceful neighbourhood. You wouldn't expect this to happen."
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