Updated: 08/01/2013 09:24 | By Channel NewsAsia
Former MP found guilty of drink-driving
SINGAPORE: Former Member of Parliament Chan Soo Sen has been fined S$2,000 and disqualified from driving for 12 months for drink-driving.
The incident happened on July 13 this year.
The court heard that Chan was stopped for a spot check at a police road block along Cantonment Road just before midnight that day.
A police officer noticed he smelt strongly of alcohol, and on questioning, Chan admitted that he had consumed alcoholic drinks earlier that evening.
Chan then underwent a hand-held breathalyzer test which he failed and he was arrested.
Further tests at the Traffic Police Headquarters showed that the proportion of alcohol in his breath was 50 microgrammes per 100 millilitres of breath which is over the prescribed limit of 35 microgrammes.
After he was sentenced, Chan told reporters that he had attended a charity event earlier that evening and consumed red wine there.
Chan said he had driven to the event as he had difficulty getting a taxi.
When the event was over, Chan said he forgot to ask for a valet to drive him home.
"It was totally not intended at all, I made a wrong decision of driving there... it was due to my carelessness," he told reporters.
He added that this was his first traffic offence in court.
"Nobody is above the law. I committed an offence, I faced up to it and I accept the sentence and move on," he said.
In his written mitigation that was tendered to the court, Mr Chan also asked for leniency as his wife has been ill for the past two months, and had been admitted into hospital a few days ago.
"I expect to have to take care of her, drive her around, and arrange medical appointments," he said.
He added that there was no accident, injury, or damage to public property, and that he had co-operated fully with the authorities.
Chan, who was a minister of state for various ministries between 2001 and 2006, could have been jailed up to six months or fined S$5,000.
- CNA/fa/ac
