Title : Former TV host Benedict Goh charged with
drink-driving
Date : 10 May 2007 0612 hrs (SST)
SINGAPORE : Former television host Benedict Goh on Wednesday became
the latest celebrity to be charged in court with drink-driving,
capping a week that has seen the actions of inebriated drivers make
the headlines.
Goh, best known for his stint as host of game show "The Pyramid
Game", faces four charges arising from two separate
incidents.
In the early hours of February 10 this year, the 38-year-old was
driving along the Ayer Rajah Expressway, in the direction of Tuas,
when he collided with a stationary car that had been involved in
another accident.
A breathalyser test showed the alcohol level in Goh's system was
over the legal limit. He was charged with driving under the
influence of alcohol and driving without due care.
In another incident on February 18, 2004, Goh was found at about
6am by police officers in the driver's seat of his car, which was
stopped along Lorong 1, Toa Payoh. Again, he failed a breathalyser
test.
Goh allegedly told the police that someone else had been at the
wheel of the car. He was charged with being found unfit to drive a
vehicle and with providing false information to a police
officer.
Goh's lawyer S.S. Dhillon on Wednesday asked the court for leave to
make further representations. Bail of $10,000 was posted and the
case will be up for mention next month.
Also in court was Su Hong, 48, the driver accused of involvement in
a fatal hit-and-run accident on Outram Road on Monday evening that
left a nightclub hostess dead.
The businessman faces five charges, including for failing to stop,
not rendering assistance to the victim and removing his car from
the scene.
Su had sped off after hitting China national Yuan Fudi while she
was crossing the road. But about two hours later he turned himself
in, and subsequently failed a breathalyser test.
Su told the court he would be engaging a counsel and is now out on
bail of $12,000. His case is up for mention again in two
weeks.
Under the law, drunk drivers can be fined up to $5,000 or jailed
for up to six months. Su, who was also charged with being involved
in a rash and negligent act leading to a death, could be jailed up
to two years and fined.
The number of arrests for drink driving has been growing, with 914
persons nabbed in the first three months of this year - 161 more
than in the same period last year. Between this January and March,
40 drink-driving related accidents led to death or injury.
Meanwhile, actor Christopher Lee is expected to enter his plea in
court on Thursday over five drink-driving charges for an accident
in Little India last year. - TODAY
