Man jailed for driving under influence of Kpods, killing elderly woman in Teck Whye

SINGAPORE - In five months, a man got into four traffic accidents, including driving under the influence of Kpods in two of them.

One of these accidents caused the death of an 83-year-old woman, and injured her 84-year-old friend.

On Nov 11, Lim Jinsheng, 30, was sentenced to six years, nine months and 15 weeks’ jail. He will also be disqualified from driving for 14 years after his release from prison.

He pleaded guilty to seven charges, including reckless driving causing death, driving under the influence of drugs, and the possession of etomidate.

Court documents stated that Lim was driving a rental car along the Bukit Timah Expressway on Nov 8, 2025.

A witness noticed Lim was driving unsteadily, weaving left and right within his lane. The witness followed Lim’s vehicle, as they were travelling in the same direction.

When Lim was driving along Teck Whye Lane towards Choa Chu Kang Road at around 2.50pm, his vehicle stopped at the T-junction, even though the path ahead was clear.

Just then, the two elderly women walked to the junction and were about to cross the road.

Lim’s car suddenly surged towards the pavement where the two women were standing, mounted the kerb and hit them. Both women fell to the ground.

When the witness approached Lim and asked him to get out of his vehicle, Lim was unresponsive.

Passers-by called the police. A woman told the police she saw Lim in a “zombie” state after the accident. He was also holding a vape.

The victims were taken to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, where the 83-year-old woman died. She had multiple lacerations, bruises and abrasions on her head, torso and limbs.

The 84-year-old fractured her left hip and left wrist.

Lim was arrested that day, and his blood contained etomidate.

According to court documents, Lim said he blacked out right before the collision, and was woken up by someone telling him he had gotten into an accident.

Months earlier, Lim also drove while under the influence of etomidate when he collided with a traffic light and a traffic sign at the cross junction of Bedok North Avenue 3 and Bedok North Road.

A passerby who witnessed the accident called the police.

Officers found two Kpods in Lim’s pockets, and another 38 Kpods in his bag.

At the scene, Lim claimed he blacked out due to his low blood sugar, but paramedics found his blood sugar levels were normal.

He was arrested and taken to Singapore General Hospital for a blood test, which showed his blood contained etomidate.

On July 16, 2025, Lim was driving along the Central Expressway at about 11pm when he rear-ended a car.

The victim, a 41-year-old man, was given three days of medical leave as his head was hurting after the accident.

On July 5, 2025, Lim’s car mounted a kerb and crashed into a lamp post and a directional sign. He told the police he was tired and lost concentration while driving, and was not arrested that day.

The accident caused about $1,950 in damages to government property.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Yohanes Ng sought a sentence of between six and seven years, nine to 13 months, and seven to nine weeks’ imprisonment for Lim.

He also asked the court to impose a driving disqualification of between 12 and 14 years.

The prosecutor said: “(Lim) committed traffic offences on at least four different occasions over the span of just five months, with only sheer luck ensuring that his first three incidents of careless driving did not cause any serious harm.

“Tragically, on his final occasion of offending, his recklessness took the life of an innocent. Such behaviour must be met with the strongest reprobation from this court.”

Between 2023 and 2025, there were 38 traffic accidents linked to drug and etomidate use.

Of these, 19 led to deaths.

Lim’s lawyer, Ariffin Sha, who was assigned to the case under the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme, said the sentence sought by the prosecution was fair.

In court, Ariffin read an apology Lim had written to the victims over his selfish behaviour.

He said: “This accident happened because I did things without realising the grave consequences and no words will ever describe how sorry and guilty I am, for my actions have caused insurmountable loss and distress to all the victim’s family.”