Real Mercs Driver in Tampines Accident Responded; Said He Sped Up to See Saab’s Car Plate Number

Three days ago, a six-vehicle accident that claimed two lives, occurred at a junction in Tampines.

Blame was immediately pinned on a black Saab that ran the red light at the junction, though fingers also turned to point at the driver of a white Mercedes as dashboard camera footage revealed the Mercedes seemed to be “challenging” the Saab moments prior to the accident.

In the footage, the black Saab was seen speeding past a white Mercedes. The Mercedes seemed to speed up to “challenge” the Saab before the Saab forced the Mercedes onto the curb.

Immediately after that, the Saab sped up for a few seconds before crashing into vehicles at the junction of Tampines Avenue 1 and Tampines Avenue 4.

The driver of the black Saab was handed four charges.

As the prosecution requested for an extension to allow police more time to investigate, the suspect, 42-year-old Muhammad Syafie Ismail, will appear in court again on 7 June.

After the footage was uploaded online, online users pointed out that the white Mercedes was partially to blame for the accident.

Netizens noted that when the Mercedes sped up to “challenge” the Saab, it motivated that Saab to go faster seconds before the accident happened.

Online users allege that the white Mercedes was also involved in another incident two days before the accident, in which the Mercedes was driving recklessly and tailgated a motorcyclist, trying to force the biker off the road.

After viewing the footage from 20 April, netizens were further convinced that the Mercedes driver is irresponsible and probably sped up on purpose when the black Saab was speeding on 22 April.

“Fake” Apology From Alleged White Mercedes Driver

A screenshot of a Reddit post, that has since been deleted, has been circulating on the internet.

In the Reddit post, the alleged driver of the white Mercedes car claimed he had no ill intentions.

“I (sped up) because my thought was to tell the Saab driver to slow down, hence I sped up while he was overtaking,” the Redditor wrote.

Many netizens bashed the alleged Mercedes driver for the half-hearted apology and excuses, but one user pointed out it looked very similar to another apology uploaded 10 years ago.

Referencing the copypasta (a block of text copied and pasted to the internet and social media) below, the user said the Reddit post was “plagiarised”.

This made some question whether the Reddit post was actually by the Mercedes driver or by some internet troll.

At the same time, netizens were criticising Anthony Soon Han Tiong, a senior adviser at car repair and maintenance firm Success United.

Though not the Mercedes driver, Mr Soon uploaded the dashboard camera footage online on behalf of the actual driver as the driver did not have a social media account.

Netizens mistakenly thought Mr Soon was the driver of the white Mercedes and even sent him death threats. Mr Soon has since filed a police report.

Mr Soon also told TODAY that the Reddit post could not have been written by the Mercedes driver as the driver was a man in his 50s who spoke Chinese and understood little English.

White Mercedes Driver Speaks Out, Clarifies Reddit Post Was Not By Him

The driver, 50-year-old Mr Yang (transliterated from Chinese), of the white Mercedes has come forward to express his innocence.

Speaking to Shin Min Daily News, he said that he was in the car with his 79-year-old mother and 13-year-old daughter, so it was “impossible for him to do what netizens said.”

Mr Yang told Shin Min that he had been driving “at the same speed” when the car suddenly overtook him and crashed into the right side of his Mercedes.

“I was scared when hit, and the Saab didn’t slow down. I caught up to him to try to see his licence plate, but within a few seconds, he had already rushed into the junction ahead.”

In response to the viral Reddit post, Mr Yang said his English is not good and that he did not make the post.

“The police also asked me if I had any quarrel with the driver of the Saab before the incident,” Mr Yang said.

“I said that I didn’t quarrel with him, let alone race with him.”

Netizens Are Unconvinced

Netizens are unconvinced even after hearing Mr Yang’s story.

In fact, netizens are saying he is even more irresponsible for speeding with his mother and daughter inside the car, as he was endangering not just his life, but theirs as well.