Driver gets jail for causing motorcyclist's death while turning into Yishun car park

SINGAPORE: A driver who caused a motorcyclist's death in a collision while turning into a car park in Yishun was sentenced to 15 weeks' jail on Friday (Jul 22).

Teo Kai Xiang, 34, was also banned from driving for eight years, after pleading guilty to one charge of driving without reasonable consideration for others on the road.

Another charge of inconsiderate driving that caused the victim's motorcycle to hit a stationary car was considered for sentencing.

At the end of the hearing, Teo's lawyers informed the court that he was appealing against his sentence.

The court heard that on Nov 1, 2020 at about 11.30am, Teo was driving his car on the first lane of Yishun Ring Road towards Yishun Avenue 5.

He made a right turn into a non-signalised T-junction leading to the entrance of the open air car park of Block 165, Yishun Ring Road.

At the same time, the 50-year-old victim Mr Leong Chee Kiong was travelling straight on Yishun Ring Road in the opposite direction on his motorcycle.

Teo did not come to a complete stop when checking for oncoming vehicles before making the turn, and failed to give way to Mr Leong's motorcycle, causing a collision.

The collision caused Mr Leong's motorcycle to hit the front right portion of another stationary car at the entrance of the car park.

Just before the collision, the driver of the other car had noticed an unknown object coming towards his car from his right, and then felt a hard impact.

When Teo alighted to check what happened, he saw Mr Leong lying on the ground. The victim was taken to the hospital. He suffered traumatic brain injury, a rib fracture and multiple facial fractures.

Mr Leong underwent emergency medical procedures and was admitted to the intensive care unit, but he died later that same day at 11pm. The cause of his death was found to be head injury.

The autopsy report did not make any finding on whether Mr Leong was run over by a vehicle.

There was no evidence of mechanical failure in Teo's car, while the extent of damage to Mr Leong's motorcycle meant that investigators could not determine any possible mechanical failure that could have contributed to the accident.

A forensic report found that based on estimates of the motorcycle's projection speed, Mr Leong's motorcycle would have been visible to Teo for six to eight seconds on the road, and for four seconds at the very least.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Gladys Lim sought at least five months' jail for Teo, while his defence lawyers Mr Sunil Sudheesan, Ms Diana Ngiam and Ms Joyce Khoo asked for four to six weeks' jail.

Ms Lim highlighted that Mr Leong's motorcycle would have been visible to Teo and that his failure to come to a complete stop before turning would have affected his ability to spot oncoming vehicles.

She also acknowledged that there were no signs of dangerous driving by Teo and that he had a clean driving record prior to the accident.

Teo's lawyers argued that it was not clear whether the helmet worn by the motorcyclist met safety standards set by authorities.

They added that around end 2021, a "new sizeable hump" with speed regulating strips was installed on the same stretch of road where the accident happened.

This indicated that "our authorities recognise the dangers of vehicles, especially motorcyclists, approaching the bend at high speeds and have therefore put in place interventionist features to mandate that vehicles slow down as they approach", they said.

Teo could have been jailed up to three years, fined up to S$10,000 or both for causing the death of another person through careless or inconsiderate driving.