Cyclist Jailed 1 Week After Hitting 53YO Man Who Later Died in Hospital

Be careful when you ride a bicycle.

That’s the lesson that Salminen Toni Timo, a Finnish man in Singapore, had to go through after accidentally killing a man.

Here’s what happened.

Accident Along Sims Avenue

On 1 Oct 2019, Timo was cycling along the second lane of Sims Avenue because of the cars parked at the first lane.

Court documents showed that it was a clear day with moderate traffic flow.

Then-53-year-old Chew Fook Yew was crossing the road on the other side of the road.

Timo claims that he saw Chew on the other side of the road when he was about 40 to 50 metres away from the point of collision.

Even after seeing Chew briskly walked onto the second lane of the opposite side of the road, Timo did not slow down.

It was added that even after Chew walked into his lane, Timo did not notice the pedestrian until the last moment where he attempted to stop and rang his bicycle bell.

The prosecution on the case emphasised that Timo had an “unobstructed and clear view” of the road.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t stop in time and rammed into Chew who fell backwards onto the asphalt road.

Timo immediately attended to Chew and shouted for help, and a passerby called for an ambulance.

Throughout the aftermath, Timo did not leave the scene until the ambulance arrived.

He also filed a police report himself about an hour later.

Death

According to reports, Chew was conveyed to Tan Tock Sing Hospital where it was observed that his brain was “extremely swollen” during the surgery.

After hearing about his condition, Chew’s family decided to withdraw blood pressure support and he was pronounced dead on 6 Oct 2019.

Sentencing

Timo’s lawyer asked for a S$6,000 fine and a disqualification period, citing how he was trying to avoid another pedestrian standing on the first lane, as well as a vehicle on his left.

He added that his client was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression after the accident and has not ridden a bike since.

The prosecution, on the other hand, asked for a 3-week jail term. It was pointed out that regardless of whether Chew should or should not have crossed the road, Timo should’ve been keeping a lookout for both pedestrians and vehicles.

Eventually, the judge sentenced Timo to a one-week jail term.

For one, they can’t disqualify Timo since a bicycle isn’t a motor vehicle.

And two, after studying about 240 cases, only 8% had fines imposed and the reason is that the victims themselves contributed greatly to the accident.

In this case, Chew cannot be considered as jaywalking as the nearest pedestrian crossing is at least 40 to 50 metres away and there was no “significant” negligence contribution on Chew’s part.

The judge added that while cyclists are, understandably, more focused on vehicles on the road, it’s not an excuse to neglect to keep a lookout for other road users, particularly, pedestrians.

Yes, that’s to all the cyclists out there in Singapore, and more.

Featured Image: Google Maps