Drunk S’pore driver who said ‘sorry’ before escaping from traffic police at 140km/h jailed 14 weeks

Singapore driver who said ‘sorry’ before escaping from traffic police sentenced to 14 weeks’ jail

Last September, a 26-year-old man was stopped by traffic police for drink driving along Whitley Road.

At the checkpoint, Lin Jingjie (transliterated from Chinese) then rolled down his truck’s window and said “sorry” before driving through a roadblock.

He was arrested after crashing his vehicle into a lamppost.

Source: Lianhe Zaobao

On Wednesday (19 June), Lin was sentenced to 14 weeks’ jail and fined S$2,000, Lianhe Zaobao reported.

Driver crossed lane dividers & weaved between vehicles

According to dashcam footage, the accused was driving at around 1.20am when his friend called him to warn him about a roadblock ahead.

Upon driving to the inspection area, Lin said “sorry” to the traffic police, then suddenly accelerated his vehicle to escape.

The traffic police immediately gave chase. Lin proceeded to drive dangerously by crossing lane dividers and weaving between vehicles.

Throughout his journey, he drove to the Pan-Island Expressway (PIE) before speeding from the Adam Road exit to Farrer Road.

He also repeatedly told his friend over the phone that he “ran away”.

Court documents revealed that Lin’s escape covered about 4.5km and lasted approximately five minutes. At one point, he was travelling at 140km/h.

Blood alcohol content was 1mg above legal limit

Moreover, Lin’s blood alcohol content (BAC) was found to be 1mg above the legal limit.

In Singapore, the legal drink-driving limit is enforced at 80 mg per 100ml of blood or 35 mg of alcohol per 100ml of breath.

In court, he claimed that he began drinking with friends around 9pm the night before the incident.

Before attempting to drive home, he had consumed at least seven small glasses of beer.

Source: Gerrie van der Walt on Unsplash, for illustration purposes only

Pleading for leniency, Lin’s defence lawyer argued that his client’s BAC was barely above the stipulated limit and that his poor judgment led to the incident.

On the other hand, the prosecution contended that the breath alcohol test was conducted at 3.52am, which was more than two hours after Lin fled the checkpoint.

As a result, his BAC would have been higher if it was tested earlier.

Apart from the jail term and fine, Lin’s driving license was also revoked for a period of 40 months.

Also read: Lorry Flips Sideways After CTE Accident, Man Arrested For Drink Driving & Hurting Public Servant

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Featured image adapted from Lianhe Zaobao.