A 44-year-old man has been sentenced to three years and ten months’ jail after a drunk driving incident that left an auxiliary police officer in a vegetative state. Yoong Kok Kai, a director at Youngminds Online, will also face a 10-year driving ban following his release.
District Judge Kok Shu-En described the incident as “a needlessly senseless and tragic accident” during sentencing on 17 March 2025.
Seven-Hour Drinking Spree Leads to Deadly Speeding at Tuas Checkpoint
Yoong’s drinking binge began around 5pm on 23 March 2023 at a restaurant on Fraser Street near Beach Road. He consumed one and a half pints of beer before driving to meet his property agent at a South Bridge Road restaurant, where he drank about one-third of a 500ml bottle of whiskey.
At around 10pm, he walked to a nearby pub and shared a three-litre “tower” of beer with a waitress.
Intoxicated, Yoong decided to drive home to Yishun at approximately 11:40pm. However, for reasons unknown, he ended up heading toward Tuas Checkpoint instead.
Speed cameras caught him traveling at around 134kmh along Ayer Rajah Expressway shortly after 12:30am on 24 March 2023, exceeding the 90kmh limit.
PolCam footage later showed him speeding at up to 119kmh along the Tuas Checkpoint car departure lane viaduct—more than double the 50kmh speed limit.
Just before 12:50am, Yoong was speeding along the first lane of a three-lane road at the viaduct, which had a bend with security bollards cordoning off the leftmost lane.
“Yet, the accused dangerously sped around the bend,” Deputy Public Prosecutor Esther Lim told the court. “The accused lost control of his car and his car veered right, speeding right through two safety humps intended to reduce vehicle speeds approaching the Tuas Checkpoint.”
Mr Ng Yi Shu, a 30-year-old auxiliary police officer on duty, spotted Yoong’s car speeding around the bend and veering right. Thinking Yoong was heading toward the slip road, Mr Ng ran behind a safety bollard and gantry in an attempt to get out of the way.
However, Yoong’s Lexus failed to stay in lane or take the right slip road. Instead, it hit a divider, mounted a kerb, and struck Mr Ng, who was thrown into the air and landed face-first.
The impact was so severe that it uprooted the safety bollard, gantry, barrier, and a traffic light.
Young Officer Left with Traumatic Brain Injury and Massive Medical Bills
The collision left Mr Ng with a severe traumatic brain injury and extensive facial fractures.
Despite undergoing multiple operations between March and June 2023, Mr Ng remains in a vegetative state. He is now bedbound, non-communicative, and must be fed through a tube in his nose.
“This young man is still alive today but his quality of life has been irreversibly damaged,” said the judge, adding that Mr Ng’s family “will have to live with the consequences of Yoong’s folly for the rest of their lives.”
Mr Ng is permanently incapacitated and unable to perform basic functions without assistance.
“He cannot walk, he cannot talk, he cannot take care of himself, and he cannot work to support himself ever again. Till he dies, he will require care and assistance in all aspects of his daily living,” the prosecution submitted.
Mr Ng was discharged to a community hospital on 17 October 2023 while awaiting care at a long-term nursing home.
His medical and nursing home bills totaled more than $455,000. After deductions from insurance and other means, there was still an out-of-pocket payment exceeding $10,000, plus more than $5,000 from his MediSave account.
Property Damage and Legal Consequences
The crash also caused more than $37,290 in property damage, including two gantry barriers, a traffic light pole, and an observation point hut. To date, Yoong has made no restitution.
Police arrested Yoong for drink driving at the scene. Tests showed he had 153mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood—almost double the legal limit of 80mg.
In total, he drove approximately 27km while intoxicated.
DPP Lim had urged the court to sentence Yoong to four years’ jail and a $10,000 fine, stating: “The accused has ruined the lives of a young man and his family by his senselessly reckless actions… No matter the amount of economic restitution, the victim’s life, and his family’s, will never be the same.”
Yoong pleaded guilty on 27 February to causing grievous hurt by dangerous driving and driving under the influence.
Here's a summary of the Chocolate Finance saga, simplified so even a non-finance kid can understand:
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