JB police seek info on S’porean man seriously injured in accident involving Malaysian cop, driver

SINGAPORE – The Johor Bahru police are seeking the assistance of a Singaporean motorist to provide more information after he and a Malaysian police officer were seriously injured by a car on Jan 27.

The Singaporean driver, 53, was pulled over to receive a traffic summons in a bus lane in Jalan Johor Bahru-Air Hitam near Larkin at around 10pm that day, said the Johor Bahru Southern Police District in a statement.

Both his Toyota Estima and a police officer’s motorcycle were parked by the road.

The summons issued was for the use of a telecommunications device while driving, investigating officer Dayang Aziemah told The Straits Times on Jan 29.

While the driver and the police officer on duty were standing by the road behind the Singaporean’s car, they were hit from the back by a Honda Civic driven by a Malaysian man.

Preliminary breath test results on the local driver, who was not injured, presented an alcohol content level of 154mg per 100ml, exceeding the permissible limit.

Both the Singaporean man and the police officer were seriously injured, said Inspector Dayang on Jan 29.

They were taken to a hospital in Johor Bahru. But the Singaporean left on Jan 28 after he was visited by a next of kin, the inspector said, adding that the man had decided to seek treatment in Singapore. It was unclear which hospital he went to.

Inspector Dayang said the local driver, 32, was charged with causing injury while driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs under the Road Transportation Act. He pleaded not guilty on Jan 29, she added.

Both the front of his sedan and the rear of the Singaporean’s multi-purpose vehicle were visibly damaged.

The Johor Bahru police said they were seeking witnesses to the incident.