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[Above: (inset) Jeffrey Ching Fook Soon, the man who dashed across the expressway and; passers-by lifting a lorry to free the body of a motorcyclist who was killed in the accident.]
Clarification: In the original headline, we stated that the jaywalker was jailed for four months. This is incorrect. The man was jailed for four weeks as reported in the article.
A man who dashed across an expressway two years ago, causing a fatal five-vehicle collision, was jailed for four weeks on Monday.
The man, Jeffrey Ching Fook Soon, 30, was drunk and could not remember how he ended up at the expressway.
He pleaded guilty to the negligent act of crossing a section of the Pan-Island Expressway (PIE) without keeping a proper lookout. The accident happened on the evening of March 15, 2009.
Ching walked away from the accident with bruises and abrasions. But the pile-up he caused resulted in the death of a motorcyclist.
According to a Straits Times report in 2009, Ching crossed the PIE near Bukit Batok Industrial Park A, just off the Toh Guan exit.
Ching made it across the left-most lane without incident because a taxi-driver slammed on his brakes in time to avoid a collision.
However, he suddenly turned and walked back towards the left lane, another ST report said.
5 collided in chaos created by man
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Suddenly he turned again, causing an approaching Honda to immediately apply its brakes, the report said.
But the car still hit Ching, who rolled up the bonnet and hit the front windscreen before rolling down and landing on the expressway.
A Nissan behind the Honda also braked and swerved left. However the action caused Rajoo Subramaniam Naidu’s motorcycle to hit the car
The 52-year-old security officer was thrown off his bike into the path of an oncoming lorry, which struck him and pinned him under its front wheels.
Mr Rajoo's bike careened to the left and hit the back of the taxi.
The lorry also hit the back of the Nissan.
The lorry driver was reported to be looking dazed for a while but soon gathered his wits and tried to free Mr Rajoo by jacking up his lorry.
Another motorist appeared with a stethoscope and checked Mr Rajoo's vital signs but found none.
Another lorry pulled up and its driver asked those around the scene to help lift the lorry and push it backwards.
The group managed to free Mr Rajoo but it was too late. He was pronounced dead by paramedics who had arrived.
According to ST, Ching reeked strongly of alcohol. He was found to have 177mg per 100ml of blood, over twice the legal limit of 80mg per 100ml of blood for driving.
He could have been jailed for up to three months and/or fined up to $1,500.
tonyng@sph.com.sg
 
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