'She must have been in great pain': Son of woman, 77, who died after allegedly being dragged 1.5km in Jurong hit-&-run

The son of the 77-year-old woman who died after being hit by a minibus and dragged for 1.5km said she must have been in "great pain" at the time.

The woman was found along the Pan-Island Expressway (PIE) on Oct. 16 and pronounced dead at the scene.

The police later said the woman had been involved in a prior hit-and-run with a minibus at the junction of Jurong West Street 61 and Jurong West Avenue 4.

According to Shin Min Daily News, the woman had rolled under the minibus and was dragged along the road for over 1.5km.

A 66-year-old male driver has been arrested for driving without due care and attention, causing death.

Police investigations are ongoing.

Healthy and working

Speaking to Shin Min at his mother’s funeral, her son, surnamed Huang (transliteration), said that despite her age, she remained clear-headed and insisted on going to work as a cleaner every day.

Huang recalled returning home that morning and not seeing his mother, but thought little of it as she usually left for work in the morning.

He only realised the seriousness of the situation when police called to inform him that his mother had died in an accident on the expressway.

He immediately drove down to the scene.

“I immediately felt that my mother couldn’t have run onto the expressway on her own. Later, after confirming with the police, I learned that my mother was hit downstairs and dragged all the way to the expressway 1.5km away,” he told Shin Min.

Police later told him that his mother had been hit and dragged by a minibus whose driver fled the scene.

Huang, his parents’ only son, said the family was heartbroken by what happened.

“It’s one thing to be in a car accident, but my mother was dragged so far after being hit. I saw that my mother’s condition was very bad at the end. She was trapped under the car and must have been in a lot of pain and felt helpless.”

Unclear what happened

Huang said it remains unclear how the accident happened, why his mother was trapped under the vehicle, and why the driver did not stop, Shin Min reported.

The driver has yet to contact the family, Huang added.

While Huang has mixed feelings about forgiveness, he said the family would not stop the driver from paying his respects to his mother at the funeral hall.

However, they are concerned his presence could upset relatives and friends.