Kombi driver drinks, overloads by seven

Magistrate Sindisile Zwane told Albert Nhleko (31) of Lubulini that he was selfish because he could have killed many people while driving the overloaded kombi drunk.

"You overloaded with seven passengers and, on top of that, got drunk. Why did you not drop the people off before drinking alcohol? If you want to commit suicide, do not involve innocent people; you better do it alone," Magistrate Zwane said.

Magistrate Zwane asked Nhleko what he was going to do with the extra cash he had collected from the seven passengers.

The magistrate asked him if he wanted to buy more alcohol. Nhleko could not answer most of the questions but apologised and admitted he had made a mistake by committing the offences.

He was arrested near Mabovini, Mankayane, on April 28, 2012, while driving a Toyota Quantum registered VSD 332 AH.

The charge sheet states that Nhleko carried 20 passengers with 0.2 milligrams of alcohol content in his system instead of the 0.1 milligrams which is the legal limit for holders of professional driving permits.

Nhleko was also charged with overloading the vehicle by carrying 20 passengers instead of 13.

He was sentenced to two years imprisonment with an option of a E2 000 fine for each count, but at the time of compiling this report he had not been able to pay the E4 000 fine.

Post your comment

Your name:

Your e-mail address:

Your website:

Add your comments:

Please enter the code you see in the image:

Image:

Code: