Man jailed six weeks for causing death of 4-year-old girl in Bukit Batok accident

SINGAPORE — A driver who killed a four-year-old girl and injured her domestic helper who were on their way home from a childcare centre in Bukit Batok last October was sentenced to six weeks’ jail on Thursday (Dec 6).

Sai Mee Chun, 54, was also disqualified from driving all classes of vehicles for five years.

He pleaded guilty to causing the death of Eleanor Tan Si Xuan by a negligent act, while another charge of causing grievous hurt to Ms Su Su Hlaing was taken into consideration for sentencing.

Sai will begin serving his sentence on Dec 17 and is out on S$10,000 bail.

At about 6.40pm on Oct 9 last year, Ms Su, 38, and Eleanor jaywalked across Bukit Batok Central instead of taking the nearby overhead bridge.

Eleanor’s mother, Ms Jacelyn Wong, previously told reporters that she would usually pick the girl up from childcare, but sent Ms Su that fateful day as she was cooking her daughter’s favourite dish of steamed eggs.

Sai was driving along Bukit Batok Central towards Bukit Batok West Avenue 2, on the way to visit his father. He was driving at about 60km/h on the road with a speed limit of 50km/h.

The road surface was dry, visibility was clear and traffic was light at the time.

“While driving straight, despite having an unobstructed view of the road ahead, the accused failed to keep a proper lookout and only noticed (Eleanor and Ms Su) when they were less than half a car length away from him,” said Deputy Public Prosecutor Lee Zu Zhao.

Unable to stop his car in time, Sai collided into them. They were flung forward into the air before landing on the road.

Both the girl and the helper were taken to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, where Eleanor died from multiple injuries. Ms Su, who sustained several fractures, cuts and bruises, was hospitalised for about two-and-a-half weeks.

Inspections showed that Sai’s car had no mechanical defects.

DPP Lee noted several aggravating factors, including the fact that Sai was speeding in an area with a high volume of human traffic.

But Sai’s lawyer, Ms Choo Yean Lin, argued that her client had a clean driving record and helped with police investigations. “The loss of a young life will remain on his conscience for the rest of his life,” she added.

For causing death by a negligent act, Sai could have been jailed up to two years and/or fined.