Woman In 'Basikal Lajak' Case Walks Free After Court Of Appeal Overturns Guilty Verdict
Sam Ke Ting, after her acquittal, said that she did not intend to cause the accident, which killed eight teenagers.
By Sadho Ram — 11 Apr 2023, 01:54 PM — Updated over 1 year ago
The Court of Appeal today, 11 April, freed a woman who was sentenced to six years in jail in April last year for reckless driving that resulted in the death of eight teenagers in the early morning of 18 February 2017
A three-person Court of Appeal bench unanimously allowed the woman's appeal to quash her guilty verdict as well as a six-year jail sentence and RM6,000 fine by the Johor Bahru High Court on 13 April 2022.
Justice Hadhariah Syed Ismail chaired the bench, which had Justices Hashim Hamzah and Azman Abdullah as members. The court held that the charge against the woman, Sam Ke Ting, was defective.
The 28-year-old was charged under Section 41(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987 (Act 333) for causing death by reckless driving more than six years ago when she rammed into a group of teens riding modified bicycles (basikal lajak) on Jalan Lingkaran Dalam, Johor Bahru at 3.30am.
While reading out the ruling, Hadhariah told Sam, "You are now a free person."
After she was freed today, Sam apologised to the parents of the eight children. She also acknowledged that her apology would not bring the teenagers back and may not give the parents any peace.
"My words cannot bring the deceased back to the family, however, I want to convey to the family that I also bear the pain of the tragedy. I sincerely apologise to the victim's families," she said.
According to her, although she was involved in the accident, it was not intended by her.
"Every moment my soul and thoughts are haunted by the unfortunate incident that happened that night," Malay Mail quoted her saying in Bahasa Melayu at the Palace of Justice today.
I will carry this feeling to the grave.
