KUALA LUMPUR — A woman charged with reckless driving which caused the death of eight teenage cyclists in 2017 was freed by a Johor Baru magistrate’s court on Monday (Oct 28).

Magistrate Siti Hajar Ali released 24-year-old Sam Ke Ting without calling her to the stand after finding the prosecution had failed to prove a prima facie case.

Ms Siti Hajar said the court took into consideration several factors, such as the dark, hilly and windy road conditions, and the unforeseeable presence of a bicycle gang on the road at 3am.

The magistrate said the bicycle gang had put themselves in danger.

“Looking at the testimony of investigators, the lights on the road were dim and there was a big tree on that road.

“The bicycle joyrides are known to the locals and there were complaints of races in the area.

“Only residents in the area and those who frequent that stretch know of these things.

“It is not fair (to expect) motorists who use that road infrequently or do not live in the area to know about the joyrides and races,” she said.

Ms Siti Hajar added that at the time of the incident, Ms Sam was not under the influence of alcohol, was not using her handphone and had her seatbelt on – all proof that she was driving carefully.

Ms Sam had pleaded not guilty to the charge of reckless driving.

Forty-six witnesses testified in the case and 214 exhibits were tendered as evidence.

Those who were killed in the incident were Mohamad Azrie Danish Zulkefli, 14; Muhamad Shahrul Izzwan Azzuraimie, 14; Muhammad Firdauz Danish Mohd Azhar, 16; Fauzan Halmijan, 13; Mohamad Azhar Amir, 16; Muhammad Harith Iskandar Abdullah, 14; Muhammad Shahrul Nizam Marudin, 14 dan Haizad Kasrin, 16.

Eight others were seriously injured.

The tragedy had caught the attention of Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, who said it should serve as a lesson to parents to monitor their children. The sultan also condemned attempts to turn the accident into a racial issue. THE MALAYSIAN INSIGHT