'Drug driver', 30, who killed four children in horrific Oatlands crash will plead GUILTY - as shattered family choose to focus on family and God instead of attending court
- Samuel William Davidson pleaded guilty to manslaughter over Oatlands tragedy
- Davidson, 30, charged with the drink driving deaths of four children in February
- He was three times over the limit when he lost control and hit the group
- Antony, Angelina and Sienna Abdallah, and Veronique Sakr, were killed instantly
A drunk driver has admitted to killing four young children when he ploughed into seven cousins on their way to buy ice cream.
Samuel William Davidson, 30, pleaded guilty to four counts of manslaughter and three other charges on Thursday over the crash in Oatlands, in Sydney's north.
Davidson was drunk and speeding at up to 130km/h along a suburban road when he lost control of his 4WD and mowed down the group in February.
Antony, 13, Angelina, 12, and Sienna Abdallah, 9, and their cousin Veronique, 10, died instantly, and a fifth cousin, Charbel Kassas, spent months in hospital.
Samuel William Davidson (pictured), 29, is due before the Parramatta Local Court on Thursday where he is charged with 20 offences over a tragic drink driving crash at Oatlands, in Sydney's north, on February 1
Antony, 13, Angelina, 12, and Sienna Abdallah, 9, (all left) and their cousin Veronique Sakr, 10, (right) were allegedly mowed down by a drunk Davidson as they walked to get ice cream on a 40C day
Davidson was three times over the blood alcohol limit and tests found ecstasy and cocaine in his system.
He also pleaded guilty to two counts of causing grievous bodily harm and one of aggravated dangerous driving causing grievous bodily harm while under the influence of drugs.
The rest of the 34 charges he was facing will be dropped and Davidson will return to court on October 22 to be committed for sentence.
Grieving parents Danny and Leila Abdallah were not present for the hearing in Parramatta Local Court.
They said in a statement to Daily Mail Australia instead of attending Davidson's court hearing, they would spend the time with their surviving children.
In a statement issued on behalf of his wife and the Sakr family, Mr Abdallah said they had full faith that justice would be carried out by the courts.
'Despite COVID-19 restrictions, we have made a conscious decision not to attend the hearing,' he said.
Danny and Leila Abdallah lost three of their children in the tragedy, but vowed to forgive the man charged with killing their kids
In the days and weeks that followed the accident, thousands of floral tributes were left at the scene on Bettington Road
'We're determined to spend time with our children who are still with us and remain in constant prayer for the strength we need to see us through this time.
'Our trust is in our Australian judicial system, and expect the outcome will be in accordance with true justice by the governing laws of this nation which we love.
'We also have fervent faith in our Heavenly Father, with the knowledge that our children are in his loving arms. We will be reunited with our children one day soon and we encourage all those who are supporting us to keep this truth in mind.
'Furthermore we have not changed our position of total forgiveness to the driver of the incident.'
Davidson - a truck driver - allegedly spent the 40C day drinking at his home in Oatlands, before driving to a service station with a friend to get cash from an ATM.
By the time he got behind the wheel of his Mitsubishi ute he allegedly had a blood alcohol level of 0.150 - three times the legal limit.
Police allege Davidson had spent the day drinking at his rental apartment (left) near the crash scene before driving to a nearby Caltex petrol (right) station that evening
When police arrived at the scene they found both Davidson (pictured) and his passenger both shirtless, just wearing shorts
Police allege that as he drove along Bettington Road - a 60km/h zone - on his return from the petrol station he reached speeds of between 100km/h and 130km/h.
Just before 8pm he lost control of his vehicle and veered off the road, slamming into the group of children.
Four were killed instantly while two months on their cousin Charbel Kassas remains in hospital with serious injuries.
Locals in the area told how after hearing the desperate screams of the surviving kids they ran to the scene, only to be confronted by devastation.
In the days and weeks that followed the tragedy there was an outpouring of grief as the scene of the crash was turned into a makeshift shrine.
Thousands of well-wishers flocked to the scene to join Danny and Leila Abdallah, and Bridget and Bob Sakr in mourning the loss of their four children.
The morning after the crash Mr Abdallah bravely fronted the media and spoke of his love for his three children
Bridget Sakr (in blue dress) is supported by her partner Craig MacKenzie, and Danny and Leila Abdallah (end left and right) whose children were killed in the same accident at Oatlands
Mr Abdallah told Daily Mail Australia that despite being a drinker himself, he believed it was time to reduce the blood alcohol limit for drivers to zero.
'I'm a drinker, but I think the alcohol limit should be zero,' Mr Abdallah said.
'I think you should just know that you can't have any, that you can only have water, so the temptation isn't there.
'People think 'I'll just have one more, I'll be all right' because they don't want to get a taxi or an Uber, or they've spent all their money on the night out.
'We have to do something.'
Despite losing three children in seemingly avoidable circumstances, Mrs Abdallah vowed in the days after the crash to forgive Davidson.
The deeply religious family said while they could not bare to confront the man, they would
'The guy, I know he was (allegedly) drunk, driving on this street. Right now I can't hate him. I don't want to see him, (but) I don't hate him,
'I think in my heart, I forgive him, but I want the court to be fair. It's all about fairness. I'm not going to hate him, because that's not who we are.'
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