An Indian truck driver who struck and killed a Chinese tourist after running a red light in Adelaide has been sentenced to three years and four months home detention.
Jagmeet Singh, 32, knew he suffered from blackouts but got behind the wheel anyway in February 2023, driving through a light that had been red for seven seconds and hitting Negguang Wen, 64, a grandfather who was visiting his family from China.
South Australian District Court Judge Ian Press said in sentencing Singh had no memory of the crash and has been having blackouts due a brain injury the month before.
“Your decision to drive without making any enquiries about your medical condition is, however, only consistent with you deciding to put your convenience before the safety of other road users,” he said.
“As you approached the intersection of South Road and Furness Avenue the lights went red, but you did not slow down or stop — you continued at a speed of about 56 kilometres per hour through that intersection.
“You travelled for about 11 seconds after the traffic lights changed from green to amber which includes about seven seconds of driving after the lights turned red.”
Mr Wen’s daughter said she and her family had decided not to hold a grudge against Singh regardless of the sentencing outcome.
“We will continue to advocate for road safety especially when it comes to heavy vehicle driving for overseas trained drivers,” she said outside court, ABC News reported.
“We don’t want another family to go through this.”
Singh, 32, initially claimed in a television interview days after fatal crash that he did not “know what happened, it was a blink of my eye”, but later pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving.
Singh’s home detention sentence comes with a non-parole period of two years and eight months, and he will be disqualified from driving for 10 years after his sentence is complete.
