A 68-year-old woman died after she was hit, dragged along the road and rolled over by a van that made a discretionary left turn at a traffic junction.

The van driver subsequently drove off after the accident, and was arrested later that day.

The van driver, 61-year-old Singaporean Tan See Say, was sentenced to 10 months and four weeks' jail in Jul. 12, and is banned from driving for eight years, CNA reported.

He pleaded guilty to three charges under the Road Traffic Act for driving without due care and attention, causing death; failing to stop after a traffic accident and failing to render assistance. A fourth charge was considered in sentencing.

What happened

Tan was driving along Paris Ris Drive 1 before 6am on Jan. 27, 2023, and stopped at the junction of Pasir Ris Drive 1 towards Loyang Avenue.

He wanted to turn left onto Pasir Ris Drive 6, and was waiting for the traffic light to turn green.

At the same time, 68-year-old technician Ong Siang Huat was on her way to work, and waiting to cross the road along Pasir Ris Driver 1 towards Loyang Avenue.

The traffic lights then turned green in favour of the pedestrians and for vehicles turning left. However, since it was a discretionary left turn, pedestrians had the right of way.

Tan turned left when Ong started crossing the road, and failed to give way.

His van knocked Ong down, causing her to fall backwards on the road.

The van then ran over her, dragging her for a short distance.

Tan stopped for a while before driving away without stopping to check and attending to the deceased,

The driver of a car that had been behind Tan's van at the junction honked at Tan before alighting to check on the woman.

He called for an ambulance and Ong was taken to hospital with multiple injuries.

She died that same day, and her daughter put up a post on Facebook calling for witnesses.

Fined at least 10 times before

Tan had been fined at least 10 times since 1992 for speeding, careless driving and dashing red lights, CNA reported.

His most recent violation was in 2021, when he paid a fine of S$400 for failing to conform to a red-light signal.

The prosecution sought between 12 months and six weeks' jail and 15 months and nine weeks' jail for Tan, along with an eight-year driving ban.

They said that Tan had failed to keep a proper lookout for pedestrians crossing the signalised junction before executing the discretionary left turn.

"If he had kept a proper lookout for pedestrians crossing the said signalised crossing, it is unexplainable as to why he failed to spot and give way to the deceased before executing the left turn," the prosecution said.

"The accused in this case knew he had knocked into a pedestrian and ran over her and had stopped the motor van for a while with the hazard lights on when the witness honked but decided to drive off without stopping to check and render assistance to the deceased."

Did not know he had knocked into someone: Defence

Defence lawyers Sunil Sudheesan and Joyce Khoo from Quahe Woo & Palmer sought about seven months and two weeks' jail for Tan instead, CNA reported.

They said that Tan did not know he had knocked into someone.

After parking, he checked his van's tires and did not notice any puncture or damage. Hence, he felt "puzzled" as to why he had felt a bump earlier.

He only found out about the collision from the traffic police.

The defence also said that Tan intended to plead guilty, and has since been racked with guilt since the incident.

In sentencing, Judge Kok Shu-En said there was a "significant degree of carelessness" in this case.

She allowed Tan to begin his jail term next week.

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Top photo via SG Road Vigilante/Facebook and Google Maps