KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 18 — A trader has been charged with reckless driving and failing to stop at the scene of an accident involving a motorcyclist, and appeared in court today.
According to the New Straits Times, Sum Kah Fei, 34, pleaded not guilty to both charges when they were read before Magistrate Haneefa Ariffin.
Prosecutors alleged that Sum, while driving a Mercedes-Benz on the Setiawangsa-Pantai Expressway (SPE) around 12.35pm on Sunday, collided with motorcyclist Muhammad Nur’Faiz Saini, 34, causing severe injuries to the latter.
The first charge, under Section 42(1) of the Road Transport Act, accuses Sum of reckless driving.
If convicted, he faces up to five years in jail, a fine between RM5,000 and RM15,000, and a minimum five-year driving ban.
The second charge claims that Sum failed to stop after the collision, violating Section 52(1) of the same Act.
This offence carries a maximum penalty of a six-month jail term or a fine of up to RM2,000.
The incident drew widespread attention after a video of the burning Mercedes-Benz GLE450 AMG Coupe went viral.
The vehicle is believed to have caught fire after the alleged hit-and-run incident, when Sum continued driving towards Wangsa Maju without stopping.
The vehicle eventually caught fire at KM18.1 of the SPE, near the Wangsa Maju Toll Plaza, after the blaze started in the bonnet.
The magistrate set bail at RM6,000 with one surety and scheduled the next hearing for February 24, when case documents are to be submitted.
