A motorcycle-riding delivery driver, who carelessly took a shortcut across a zebra crossing and triggered a series of events that left three pedestrians dead on Sehla Avenue, has been found guilty of manslaughter.
The High Criminal Court sentenced the Bangladeshi defendant to seven years in prison, and judges ordered that he be deported after completing his sentence.
The three victims – cooks from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh – were walking home after finishing their shift at a nearby branch of a local restaurant chain when tragedy struck.
The court heard that the accident took place in the early hours of March 14, and the defendant claimed that he was ‘rushing home to eat Suhoor’ – a meal that Muslims eat during Ramadan before the start of the daily fast.
As he was taking the shortcut, the defendant reportedly rode into the path of a car, whose driver swerved to avoid hitting the motorcyclist. The Bahraini motorist instead veered to the left lane, fatally colliding with three bystanders.
The defendant was convicted of seven charges including causing the victims’ wrongful death, inflicting disabling injuries on the man driving the car, and injuring three passengers.
He was found guilty of three hit-and-run-related charges – not stopping to aid the victims, despite having the ability to, and not reporting the accident to emergency services.
He was also found guilty of causing property damage, driving against the flow of traffic, posing a threat to lives, property, and to the safety of pedestrians using the sidewalk.
“It was 3am when the suspect drove across the pedestrian crossing, in front of a vehicle, which veered off course to avoid colliding with him,” read a summary of the incident by the Public Prosecution.
“The car veered to the left lane, and its driver lost control of the steering, leading the vehicle to drift outside the road, climb the kerb, hit a bus stop sign and three pedestrians, who were propelled forward by the force and then fell.”
“The vehicle continued in its path, striking a wall and a minibus parked on the kerb. The defendant, meanwhile, kept driving and did not stop.”
“Two of the pedestrians instantly died from their injuries, while a third died in Salmaniya Medical Complex at 7am. Several passengers from the car were also wounded and taken to hospital.”
The GDN earlier reported that the victims, 43-year-old Sundor Miah from Bangladesh and 38-year-old Muhammad Idrees from Pakistan, died immediately, while 24-year-old Mir Emdadul Islam from India succumbed to his wounds four hours later.
Mr Miah’s injuries were gruesome; the coroner recorded in his autopsy that the accident shattered his skull and caused a deep wound in his abdomen, from which a portion of his intestines had spilled.
The Bahraini driver suffered fractures to his jaw, spine, hips and legs, undergoing a series of emergency surgeries.
Initially, the Bahraini man was the prime suspect in the case, but was ultimately not charged after investigators established that the tragic accident was set in motion by another individual.
Authorities carefully reviewed CCTV footage from security cameras at the scene and were able to track the motorcycle and its route, ultimately identifying and arresting the defendant.
The Bangladeshi admitted to the charges but denied fleeing the scene or committing a hit-and-run.
He testified that he was leaving Jeblat Habshi and heading to the restaurant he worked for in Ain Al Dar.
To ‘save time’, he took the shortcut, as he wanted to have a meal before Fajr prayers and the beginning of the fast.
zainab@gdnmedia.bh
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