Woman behind the wheel is a nice person, say neighbours
JOHOR BARU: Neighbours have described the 22-year-old woman who rammed into a group of teenage cyclists as a nice and friendly person.
College student Teo Sze Qi, also 22, said she had known the salesgirl for the past six years since the family of six moved into the area.
“She came home on the day she posted bail but I was unable to speak to her as she seemed traumatised.
“She has always been a good neighbour and we never had issues with the family,” she said when met at Taman Ungku Tun Aminah here on Monday.
Teo also said many people had been coming around to look for the driver since the tragedy that took the lives of eight teenagers in the wee hours of Saturday morning.
The woman was released on police bail after her statement was recorded at 7pm on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Gelang Patah MCA division chief Datuk Jason Teoh said he would offer legal help to the woman. He and his team members went to the woman’s house to offer their assistance.
“We were told that the woman is still traumatised and needs more time before she can talk about the whole episode.
“The father also appealed for more time for his daughter,” Teoh said, urging the public to give the woman and family more space as the case was still under investigation.
State Women and Family Affairs Committee chairman Asiah Md Ariff said everyone should stop blaming each other, especially over social media.
“The public should show their support and give positive comments for those involved to recover from this tragic incident,” she said.
Hospital director Dr Aman Rabu said two out of the eight victims injured in the incident – Mohamad Farhan Che Mat, 16, and Muhammad Zulfadli Yusri, 19 – had been discharged from the Sultanah Aminah Hospital. He said they were allowed to return home after a thorough check-up.
“Four others have undergone surgeries for their injuries. Another two will be going for their surgeries soon,” he said.
The six still hospitalised are Mohammad Arasshat Abdullah, 14, Muhammad Arif Salman, 15, Abdul Samad Abdul Kadir, 16, Muhammad Fitri Muhammad Fatoni, 17, Muhammad Nazri Mahmudi, 14, and Mohamed Shamizal Iqmal Abdullah, 16.