Man with multiple driving offences fined $4k over accident involving motorcyclist
SINGAPORE – A man, who was fined 15 times for driving offences in the past two decades, failed to keep a lookout, resulting in his car hitting a motorbike that had stopped at a junction in Choa Chu Kang.
The 60-year-old victim suffered a fractured hip and broken wrist, and needed surgery.
On Wednesday (Nov 24), Wu Heng Swee, 55, was fined $4,000 and disqualified from driving for two years for failing to keep a proper lookout.
Court documents did not state his occupation.
On Oct 20, 2019, Mr Mazlie Saini pulled up at the junction of Choa Chu Kang Drive and the entry into Kranji Expressway (KJE), Deputy Public Prosecutor Yee Jia Rong told the court.
At the time, around 8.40pm, he was waiting for the signal to turn right to the expressway.
DPP Yee said: “As (Wu) approached the junction, he failed to keep a proper lookout of where he was going, and did not notice the victim’s motorcycle in the same lane and in his path of travel.
“The accused collided with the victim’s motorcycle, causing the victim to fall off his bike.”
Wu stopped his car on the side of the road and headed back to the junction to assist the victim, said DPP Yee.
Mr Mazlie was taken to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, where he had surgery. He was discharged on Oct 30 and given 47 days of hospitalisation leave.
At the time of the collision, DPP Yee said the weather was fine, roads were dry and the traffic flow was moderate. He urged the judge to issue a $4,000 fine and three-year disqualification from all classes of driving licences.
He listed some 15 driving-related offences committed by Wu since 2000, such as driving against the flow of traffic, speeding and ignoring red lights. He was fined for these offences without being charged.
In his mitigation plea, Wu said he was willing to pay the fine but asked the judge not to suspend his licence as he needed to drive to look after his family.
The judge said: “There is no way of running away from this. You have a very poor driving record.”
For causing grievous hurt by a negligent act, Wu could have been jailed a maximum of two years and fined $5,000.
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