Driver who killed 4 paces corridors at 3am

SINGAPORE - His eyes were downcast, and when he spoke, he spoke softly.

"My wife and I are not learned people," the elderly man said hesitantly in Mandarin through the half-opened door in the dimly-lit hall.

"We don't know how to apologise to everyone. My son has done a great wrong.

"We're afraid that if we say more, we might make things worse."

He was speaking about the accident on the Central Expressway (CTE) which killed four people, including a South Korean couple and their daughter, on National Day.

His son had been behind the wheel of a black Honda Stream MPV which slammed into the victims as they stood on a chevron along the expressway, after their car blew a tyre.

The South Korean couple and their daughter were killed instantly, while the fourth, the driver of the Toyota Wish multi-purpose vehicle (MPV), Mr Amron Ayoub, 23, suffered multiple injuries and died in hospital.

The driver of the Honda, Mr Toh Chengyang, 34, was arrested by police for dangerous driving causing death.

He was subsequently released on bail and had his licence suspended.

The crash, which followed a series of other serious accidents, caused much furore online.

In the days following the crash, many had speculated about the identity of the driver, but until Friday, the family has not spoken about the accident to the media.

Mr Toh's family members declined to talk at first. When a New Paper team approached them at their flat in the northern part of Singapore on Tuesday, a man told us we had got the wrong place.

But the next day, Mr Toh's father spoke from the flat, albeit reluctantly.

A relative of the family, who identified himself as Mr Toh's brother-in-law, later called The New Paper.

He said that the accident had upset the family greatly, especially Mr Toh's elderly parents, who both have heart conditions.

"You can understand a parent's heart - when your child does something wrong, of course you will be sad," he added.

He said that when Madam Toh heard her son was involved, she fainted.

"We don't know what happened (with the accident) and we don't dare to talk about it. The police are handling it," said the man.

A neighbour who lives on the same floor as the Tohs said she feels Mr Toh is remorseful and worried.

"He's been having sleepless nights," she said.

She said she saw Mr Toh wandering along the corridor even at 3am.

Mr Toh's brother-in-law said that when Mr Toh's parents first learnt of the incident, they were very confused.

"They just wandered about the flat, not knowing what they were doing.

"You can't blame them, you can understand what it's like to have a son involved in such a big offence."

He added Mr Toh had also sustained injuries from the accident and is recuperating, but not at home.

How crash happened

On Aug 9, Mr Amron Ayoub was driving his girlfriend, Miss Jamie Song Jisoo, 24, her parents and her brother - all South Koreans - to Changi Airport, where the Song family was due to catch a flight to Hong Kong for a holiday.

While on the CTE going towards the Seletar Expressway at about 4am, their black Toyota Wish multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) had a flat tyre. Mr Amron, 23, a trainee pilot, parked at a chevron near the Yio Chu Kang exit to fix the problem.

Mr Amron, Miss Song and her parents are believed to have been standing near the back of the car with its rear door open when a black Honda Stream MPV slammed into the Songs, killing the older couple and their daughter instantly. Mr Amron suffered multiple injuries and died in hospital.

Later, Mr Amron's devastated father, Mr Ayoub Ahmat, 51, was quoted in The Straits Times as saying that he was ready to forgive the driver who caused the crash, but not if he took the steering wheel while intoxicated.

After the accident, there were many calls online for tougher penalties for drink driving, but it is not known if the driver who caused the accident was driving under the influence of alcohol.

However, witnesses said that the car he was driving was seen swaying just before it crashed into Mr Amron's car.

Police said that investigations are ongoing.

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