An express bus driver was sentenced to seven months’ jail and fined RM8,000 for dangerous driving, with the court citing public safety concerns over the 15 passengers on board
ALOR GAJAH: An express bus driver was sentenced to seven months’ jail and fined RM8,000 by the Magistrate’s Court here today after pleading guilty to dangerous driving last week.
Magistrate Dr Teoh Shu Yee handed down the punishment to Mohd Tamrin Ibrahim, 53, and ordered the sentence to take effect from the date of his arrest on April 21.
The court also set an additional five months’ jail if the man fails to pay the fine. He was also disqualified from holding a driving licence for five years, starting today.
According to the charge, the man drove a bus in a manner dangerous to the public at KM196.1 of the southbound North-South Expressway, near the Ayer Keroh interchange, around 3.50 am on April 15.
He was charged under Section 42(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987, which provides for a maximum jail term of five years and a fine of between RM5,000 and RM15,000 upon conviction.
In addition, the conviction must be endorsed on the offender’s driving licence, and the accused is disqualified from holding or obtaining a licence for at least five years from the date of conviction.
Earlier, deputy public prosecutor Muhamad Ehsan Nasarudin asked the court to impose a heavy sentence, including a minimum jail term of one year, arguing that the offence was serious and involved public safety.
However, the accused’s lawyer, Kamariah Md Yusof from the National Legal Aid Foundation, appealed for a minimum sentence, submitting that her client had family dependents and also suffered from asthma.
The court then handed down the jail term and fine in the interest of public safety, particularly involving the security of the 15 passengers on board at the time of the incident.
The magistrate ruled that even though no accident, injury, or damage occurred, the accused’s actions must still be held accountable. She said the case carried serious implications because the accused had failed to demonstrate safe bus handling methods.
Previously, a one-minute-and-20-second video clip had gone viral on social media showing an express bus driver driving in a dangerous manner and not paying full attention to the road.
