Van driver was checking his location on phone when he hit and killed elderly pedestrian in Serangoon

Wong Shiying
The Straits Times
Oct 10, 2022

A delivery van driver killed a 72-year-old man in an accident in 2021 after he shifted his attention from the road and failed to see the pedestrian.

Romzi Abdul Wahab, 46, was on Monday sentenced to 14 weeks' jail after he pleaded guilty to one count of driving without reasonable consideration for others on the road.

He will also be banned from driving all classes of vehicles for eight years after his release from prison.

The court heard that Romzi was making a delivery along Lorong Lew Lian in Serangoon on Nov 1, 2021. It was drizzling but visibility was clear.

After he turned into a carpark at around 3pm, he focused on a GPS device on his mobile phone on the right of his windscreen to check his location.

As a result, he failed to notice a man walking across a sheltered walkway linking two housing blocks. When Romzi saw the pedestrian in front of the van, he tried to brake but could not stop in time.

The victim, who was flung to the ground, died of head and chest injuries in hospital.

The impact of the collision dented the front of the van. An inspection of the vehicle did not find any mechanical failure that could have contributed to the accident.

The prosecution sought between 16 and 20 weeks' jail and a driving ban of eight years.

In mitigation, Romzi's lawyer, Mr Wasiur Rehman from Regal Law, said his client was disoriented as he had not been to the location before.

"He was momentarily looking at the GPS, which caused the unfortunate incident," said Mr Wasiur.

In reply, the prosecution said Romzi should have been more careful if he was unfamiliar with the environment.

For driving without reasonable consideration for others on the road and causing death, an offender can be fined up to $10,000 and jailed for up to three years.