Na Bei!
Cabby's death an accident!!!!???
A taxi driver died after he fell to the ground when a passenger pushed him, but his death was ruled a misadventure yesterday.
Mr Chew Peng Choon, 62, suffered serious head injuries and died on Sept 29, 2008 — two days after former financial controller Arun Rajan pushed him.
The 30-year old Indian national was charged with committing a negligent act not amounting to homicide, but he was acquitted last November after a district judge found no evidence against him.
The Coroner’s Court heard yesterday that Mr Rajan had downed about 15 cans of beer with a friend and was tipsy when he boarded Mr Chew’s taxi along Yishun Ring Road at around 1.30am on Sept 27, 2008.
He vomited inside the taxi while it was travelling towards his destination in Tampines. This prompted Mr Chew, who was a relief driver with Transcab, to ask him for an additional $50 for having to clean up the mess. When Mr Rajan refused, an argument ensued. As Mr Rajan did not have enough cash on him to pay the fare, Mr Chew drove to an Esso petrol kiosk along Tampines Avenue 9 for him to make a withdrawal from
an ATM machine inside a Cheers convenience store there.
Mr Rajan withdrew the money but, instead of paying the requested amount, he handed over $30 and this annoyed the older man. He started to hurl vulgarities at Mr Rajan, who was trying to move away. Witnesses saw the cabby throwing punches at Mr Rajan, who managed to block the blows. While Mr Rajan was walking away, Mr Chew hurried back to his taxi to pick up an object from the driver’s seat. An eyewitness identified the object as a screwdriver. Mr Chew then held the item in his right hand and attacked Mr Rajan. It was then that Mr Rajan pushed him away, causing the cabby to fall backwards and hit his head on the ground. State Coroner Victor Yeo said that it was not in dispute that Mr Rajan did not retaliate when Mr Chew assaulted him. Instead, Mr Chew was the aggressor and Mr Rajan had no intention of causing the injuries that led to the death of the taxi driver.
Speaking to reporters after the hearing, Mr Rajan said he was relieved that the case had ended. However, he revealed that he still had flashbacks (His Ghost haunt him) to about the incident and regretted his actions to this
day.
They say Drink driving kills, but drive a drunk also kills...
The Singapore Taxi Transport Association (Union) should implement flat cleaning fee, $50 for any passenger who vomit, shit, urine, give birth etc... Protect your drivers now. Becos they can't pick or choose their passenger.
Cabby's death an accident!!!!???
A taxi driver died after he fell to the ground when a passenger pushed him, but his death was ruled a misadventure yesterday.
Mr Chew Peng Choon, 62, suffered serious head injuries and died on Sept 29, 2008 — two days after former financial controller Arun Rajan pushed him.
The 30-year old Indian national was charged with committing a negligent act not amounting to homicide, but he was acquitted last November after a district judge found no evidence against him.
The Coroner’s Court heard yesterday that Mr Rajan had downed about 15 cans of beer with a friend and was tipsy when he boarded Mr Chew’s taxi along Yishun Ring Road at around 1.30am on Sept 27, 2008.
He vomited inside the taxi while it was travelling towards his destination in Tampines. This prompted Mr Chew, who was a relief driver with Transcab, to ask him for an additional $50 for having to clean up the mess. When Mr Rajan refused, an argument ensued. As Mr Rajan did not have enough cash on him to pay the fare, Mr Chew drove to an Esso petrol kiosk along Tampines Avenue 9 for him to make a withdrawal from
an ATM machine inside a Cheers convenience store there.
Mr Rajan withdrew the money but, instead of paying the requested amount, he handed over $30 and this annoyed the older man. He started to hurl vulgarities at Mr Rajan, who was trying to move away. Witnesses saw the cabby throwing punches at Mr Rajan, who managed to block the blows. While Mr Rajan was walking away, Mr Chew hurried back to his taxi to pick up an object from the driver’s seat. An eyewitness identified the object as a screwdriver. Mr Chew then held the item in his right hand and attacked Mr Rajan. It was then that Mr Rajan pushed him away, causing the cabby to fall backwards and hit his head on the ground. State Coroner Victor Yeo said that it was not in dispute that Mr Rajan did not retaliate when Mr Chew assaulted him. Instead, Mr Chew was the aggressor and Mr Rajan had no intention of causing the injuries that led to the death of the taxi driver.
Speaking to reporters after the hearing, Mr Rajan said he was relieved that the case had ended. However, he revealed that he still had flashbacks (His Ghost haunt him) to about the incident and regretted his actions to this
day.
They say Drink driving kills, but drive a drunk also kills...
The Singapore Taxi Transport Association (Union) should implement flat cleaning fee, $50 for any passenger who vomit, shit, urine, give birth etc... Protect your drivers now. Becos they can't pick or choose their passenger.
