Ferrari driven at 178 kph before fatal crash

SINGAPORE: The driver of a Ferrari, which was involved in the deadly crash in May this year, was travelling at 178 kilometres per hour (kph) just before the collision — almost three times the speed limit of 60 kph for the road.

This was revealed in a video shown during a coroner’s inquiry into the accident, which left three people dead.

Ma Chi, a China national, allegedly ran a red light and his vehicle collided with a taxi, which then crashed into a motorcycle.

The victims were 52—year—old taxi driver Cheng Teck Hock, 41—year—old Japanese national Ito Shigemi and Ma himself.

Ma, who was a managing director with a technology services company, was said to be practising his driving that night, before picking up his female passenger.

The accident was captured on a video recorder installed in the Ferrari.

The video showed that the car was moving at a high speed towards the junction of Victoria Street and Rochor Road, even though the lights had turned red.

The footage then showed the taxi, driven by Cheng Teck Hock, appearing in front of the Ferrari from the right.

This resulted in a fireball and metal debris being strewn all over.

Three other videos belonging to a passing taxi, a Land Transport Authority CCTV camera, and a CCTV camera at Bugis MRT entrance were also shown.

In all of them, Ma was seen driving against the red light signals in his direction at a very high speed.

Investigations revealed that Ma received a call from Ms Wu Wei Wei, a student at Eastern Asia Institute of Management on that fatal night.

Ma told her that he was outside practising his driving and would pick her up from Clarke Quay and send her home.

According to investigations, there were no mechanical defects found on the vehicle that could have caused the accident.

The transmission control of the Ferrari was also found to be set in "Race" position.

The court heard that Ma, along with Ms Wu, were both wearing seat belts.

A toxicology report also revealed that chlorpheniramine, a medication used to treat allergy or flu, was detected in Ma’s urine sample.

However, it is inconclusive if it had any bearing on the cause of the crash.

Meanwhile, an autopsy report has certified that the cause of death for Ms Ito and Mr Cheng were multiple injuries.

Mr Cheng’s family, who turned up in court on Wednesday, were visibly upset while watching the footage.

Their lawyer, Mr Liew Yik Wee, later told the media the footage showed "a lot of clarity" and the Cheng family was "anxious to know the truth."

Mr Liew added that the family had also filed claims with insurance company AXA Singapore.

The case will continue on Friday.

— CNA/ck