Man under driving ban caught speeding, tells traffic cop to ‘take the money and don’t summon me’

SINGAPORE — When he was stopped by a traffic police officer for driving above the speed limit, Peter Tang Joo Yong knew he was going to get into much more trouble than just being booked for speeding.

He was driving even though he was banned from doing so for life, and this would be the fourth time he was caught doing such a thing.

To make matters worse, he decided to offer a bribe to be let off and then shoved the officer when he could not get his way.

For attempted bribery and four other offences, including using criminal force on the officer, Tang, 72, was sentenced to 14 months and 10 weeks in jail on Wednesday (Feb 13).

On April 10 last year, Tang was driving a lorry along the Central Expressway (CTE) at 85km/h when the speed limit was 70km/h. It was a company vehicle and Tang was then working as a consultant to do maintenance works for residential apartments.

When he was stopped by a traffic police officer, he pleaded with the man to give him a chance because he was “old”. He then pulled out two S$50 notes from his wallet to bribe Sergeant David Yap.

When the officer said he was not getting any chance, Tang pressed on, saying: “Take the money and don’t summon me.”

After asking Tang if he was trying to offer a bribe, the officer proceeded to take out a pair of handcuffs and asked Tang for his driving licence.

When Tang was being arrested, he kept walking to and fro on the side of the lorry. When Sergeant Yap tapped his shoulder and told him to stop walking, Tang swiped his hand away and used his right elbow to nudge him away.

Tang then went down on his knees to beg the officer not to arrest him, admitting that he did not have a valid driver’s licence.

When the officer told him that he would have to be arrested for bribery if not for his traffic-related offences, Tang stood up, pushed the officer’s chest with both hands, and started yelling that he was old and should not be charged for more offences.

With the shove, Sergeant Yap lost his footing and stepped onto the road shoulder’s grass patch.

There, Tang continued pushing the officer’s abdomen while he was trying to handcuff him. 

Tang’s lawyer, Mr Kenneth Au-Yong, told the court that his client is “really sorry” for what he did, noting that he did not give many excuses on why it was “right or justified” for him to drive.

Tang was driving to meet the needs of his clients but has since retired, so the chances of him re-offending will be minimal, he added.

The traffic offences committed by Tang date back to 1977 when he was caught driving or permitting driving with an expired driving licence and failing to insure a motor vehicle against third-party risks. He was fined S$400 and banned from driving for a year.

Then in 1990, he was caught driving without a driver’s licence and for dangerous driving, among other things. He was again banned from driving for a year and sentenced to years of preventive detention for bringing threat of injury to a public servant and voluntarily causing hurt.

In 2010, he was caught twice for driving while under a ban. That and other charges put him in jail for a year, cost him an S$800 fine, and he was given a 10-year driving ban.

He re-offended again in 2012 and was sentenced to eight months’ jail for driving under a ban, and fined S$800 for careless driving. This time, he was disqualified from driving for life.

Tang started serving his latest jail sentence on Wednesday.