SINGAPORE: While driving under the influence of alcohol, three men allegedly fell asleep behind the wheel in separate incidents.
Tho Yu Wei Ronald, 34, Zhong Pengzhi, 38, and Dharuman Killivalavan, 29, were hauled to a district court on Thursday (June 25) and handed charges for drink driving and leaving a vehicle in a position causing undue inconvenience to others.
They were among 41 drivers, aged between 25 and 68, who were charged that day with drink driving offences.
According to court documents, Tho allegedly left his car at the front of the entrance of a multi-storey carpark at Block 176 Hougang Street 13 at about 11.05pm on April 30.
He purportedly had not less than 51 micrograms (mcg) of alcohol in 100ml of breath, over the limit of 35mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath.
Zhong had allegedly left his car in the second lane of a two-lane road along Clementi Avenue 5 at about 1.40am on May 9.
He was said to have had not less than 48mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath.
Dharuman had been driving a lorry along Loyang Avenue at about 7.45pm on June 15 when he left the vehicle along the extreme right lane.
The Indian national purportedly had not less than 87mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath.
He pleaded guilty on June 25 and was fined $7,100. He was also disqualified from driving for 36 months.
Repeat offenders
Among the 41 drivers charged, two were repeat offenders, said the police in a statement on June 24.
Cheng Woon Siong, 44, pleaded guilty on June 25 to one count of drink driving. He was stopped by the police for checks and had not less than 52mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath.
As he had been convicted of the same offence in December 2019, Cheng was sentenced to one month’s jail and fined $5,500. He will be disqualified from driving for 60 months after his release from prison.
The other driver, Koh Choon Lye, 48, was stopped by police along Tyrwhitt Road for checks on April 16.
He allegedly had not less than 51mcg of alcohol in every 100ml of breath. He had been convicted of drink driving in 2018.
In their annual statistics, the Traffic Police said there were 1,716 people arrested for drink driving in 2025.
There were 12 fatal drink driving-related accidents that year.
The police added that driving under the influence of alcohol is an extremely dangerous and irresponsible act.
They urged the public to not drive if they intend to consume alcohol, and to opt for alternative forms of transport such as taking a taxi or private-hire vehicle. - The Straits Times/ANN
