In that split second, he rammed into an unmarked government car parked along the road with a 53-year-old Customs officer inside.

The crash rocked the car and left the officer, Mr Foo Fong Yew, paralysed from the neck down.

Yesterday, Han was fined the maximum of $1,000 and banned from driving for six months in connection with the crash, which took place on Jan 20 last year. He pleaded guilty last month to grievously hurting Mr Foo, who was in hospital for about 11 months and is still bedridden.

The father of two has been undergoing physiotherapy and was able to move his arms when The Straits Times spoke to him yesterday at his Jurong West flat.

Despite his condition, Mr Foo does not bear any grudges against the lorry driver. But he said: 'I'd be even happier if he came to visit me.'

At the time of the accident, Mr Foo and other Customs officers were conducting a raid on cigarette peddlers in Mandai. His car was parked along the left lane of the three-lane Mandai Road when Han came barrelling towards the vehicle, despite the fact that its hazard lights were on.

Assistant Public Prosecutor Ong Yew Kwang said the lorry smashed into the car at around 4.30pm.

Mr Foo was rushed to Tan Tock Seng Hospital. A medical report stated that he was unable to move or feel his arms and legs and a scan revealed swelling in his spine.

The accident has left Mr Foo worried about how he will make ends meet. Currently, the Singapore Customs is paying his $1,500 monthly salary, but when his contract ends in three weeks, the payments will stop.

Mr Foo has little savings and his wife quit her job as a teacher last year to look after him.

'I'm still like any other normal human being and father...I need to take care of my wife and kids.

'I hope to get well soon and be able to sit up on the wheelchair and get out of the house myself,' said the exercise buff who used to swim every day and jog twice a week. 'Staying at home can be quite boring.'

Mr Foo intends to seek help from Senior Minister of State for Finance and Transport Lim Hwee Hua when she drops in on him this weekend.

In court, Han's lawyer, Mr Shashi Nathan, said his client was deeply remorseful about the crash.

In the seconds before the accident, Han was distracted by cigarette peddlers who emerged from the forest, the lawyer said. Han failed to see Mr Foo's vehicle, which was parked down a gentle slope ahead of him.

'The accident that occurred is an unfortunate one-off incident, which is a result of carelessness or a momentary lapse of concentration on the road,' Mr Nathan told District Judge F.G. Remedios.

Han could have been jailed for up to two years and fined up to $1,000 for causing grievous hurt through a negligent act.