Woman crashes into kerb in Bugis, abandons car to eat supper with friends
A woman lost control of her car and crashed into a road divider on Middle Road in Bugis, but abandoned her vehicle and went for supper with her friends, ignoring police officers’ warnings to return to the scene of the accident.
On May 20, Carrissa Loh, 30, pleaded guilty to five charges, including failing to render assistance to officers and causing an obstruction on a road.
According to court documents, Loh was driving along Middle Road at about 3am on Feb 1, heading towards Cuppage Road. At the junction of Middle Road and Queens Street, Loh attempted to make a right turn but lost control of her vehicle. The car, which also carried three of Loh’s friends, mounted a kerb at the centre divider and collided with a plastic bollard, uprooting it in the process.
The accident site was given as Middle Road, in front of China Bank.
Proceeded to supper after accident
Despite the accident, Loh and her friends alighted and went to Cuppage Road for supper.
At the point of Loh exiting the vehicle, the car’s right rear wheel was atop the centre divider and the car’s front portion blocked the right-most lane of Middle Road, thereby causing a traffic obstruction.
Police officers arrived shortly after, and called Loh to return to the scene of the accident. She refused, despite being warned that it was an offence to abandon her car.
She faced the following charges:
- Driving without reasonable consideration of road users
- Failing to remain at the scene to assist a police officer after an accident
- Leaving a vehicle on a road in a position that can cause danger and obstruction to other road users
Allegedly lied to officers in 2023
Loh also faced charges for a 2023 incident where she allegedly lied to police officers, and swapped the driver’s seat with a male friend who was disqualified from driving.
On Feb 19, 2023, Loh was in the front passenger seat of a car driven by 26-year-old Marcus Ng, who was previously disqualified from driving following a charge of drink-driving.
At about 11.40pm, Ng was driving on the KPE towards TPE when a traffic police officer signalled for him to stop. Ng stopped a distance away and swapped seats with Loh while the officer approached the car.
Loh was aware that Ng was not allowed to drive. When the officer caught up to their vehicle and asked who the driver was, Loh provided false information by allegedly claiming she was the one behind the wheel.
Ng and Loh were subsequently brought to the Traffic Police Headquarters for further investigations.
While providing a statement to an investigation officer, Loh continued to claim that she was the driver and had received the car keys from its owner.
In reality, it was Ng who had collected the car from its owner before driving to Loh’s home to pick her up.
Loh was accused of misleading officers by falsely claiming she had been the driver, knowing that her actions could help Ng evade punishment.
Accused suffered from depression: Defence
During sentencing, the prosecution called for an aggregate sentence of fine between $2,400 and $3,000, as well as a 24-month disqualification from driving.
According to Shin Min Daily News, the accused’s lawyer argued that Loh suffered from major depressive disorder and asked the judge to consider sending her for mandatory treatment and evaluation before sentencing. The judge acceded, and the case was adjourned to June 23 for sentencing.
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