‘Zombie vape’ user jailed for nearly seven years, banned from driving for 14 years after four crashes in five months, one killing a woman in her 80s

A man involved in four traffic accidents in just five months, including two while driving under the influence of etomidate, has been sentenced to six years, nine months and 15 weeks in jail and disqualified from holding all classes of driving licence for 14 years. In the final crash, he hit two women in their 80s, killing one.

The accused, Lim Jinsheng, 30, faced 10 charges, including offences under the Road Traffic Act and the Poisons Act. On Wednesday (11 November), he pleaded guilty to seven charges, with the remaining charges taken into consideration for sentencing.

According to the facts of the case, Lim was involved in four traffic accidents between July and November 2025.

At about 12.19am on 5 July 2025, Lim was driving a rented car along Yishun Avenue 8 when it skidded onto a road embankment and hit a lamp post and a road sign. He later said he had been distracted because he was tired, and declined to be taken to hospital. The accident caused about $1,950 in damage to public property, while repairs to the car cost $4,360.

Just over a week later, at about 11pm on 16 July, Lim rear-ended another vehicle while driving a rented car on the Central Expressway, injuring its 41-year-old male driver. The injured man was not taken to hospital immediately, but sought medical attention the next day because of a persistent headache. He was given three days of medical leave.

At about 9pm on 10 August, Lim crashed into a traffic light and a road sign at the junction of Bedok North Avenue 3 and Bedok North Road. He later claimed to have lost consciousness because of low blood sugar, but paramedics found his blood sugar level to be normal. Police found 40 “zombie vape pods” at the scene and arrested him on the spot. His blood was also found to contain 0.09 micrograms of etomidate per millilitre.

Investigations showed that Lim was making a delivery for an unidentified supplier. After collecting the vape pods at Clementi MRT Station, he was to take them to Bedok North Avenue 8 and leave them in a dry riser. The pods were worth about $3,200 in total. He stood to receive between $300 and $500 for each successful delivery.

Lim did not learn his lesson despite the repeated crashes. At about 2.51pm on 8 November, he caused a fatal accident at a T-junction in Teck Whye Lane.

Witnesses saw his car swerving as he drove along the Bukit Timah Expressway and Kranji Expressway. When he reached the junction and stopped to wait to turn, his car remained stationary even after the road ahead was clear.

The car then suddenly mounted the pavement and knocked down two elderly women who were about to cross the road. After hitting them, the car remained in gear, with its wheels continuing to turn. A witness told Lim to get out, but he did not respond. Another passer-by saw him holding an e-cigarette and described him as being “like a zombie”.

One of the women, 83-year-old Tan Kim Poh, was taken to hospital and pronounced dead at 4.10pm that day. She died from severe head and chest injuries. Her 84-year-old friend suffered fractures to her left hip and left wrist, and remained in hospital until 18 November.

Lim was arrested at the scene. A blood test found 0.03 micrograms of etomidate per millilitre of blood. He claimed that he had lost consciousness after reaching for a water bottle before the accident. The next thing he knew, someone was waking him and telling him he had hit people. He described “seeing stars” and hearing a “buzzing” in his ears.

The prosecutor from the Attorney-General's Chambers said Lim had ample opportunities to change his irresponsible driving behaviour but remained unrepentant, committing at least four traffic offences in just five months. It was sheer luck that the first three accidents had not caused serious injuries, but the last had claimed an innocent life. The prosecution urged the judge to impose a jail term of between six years, nine months and seven weeks and eight years, one month and nine weeks, as well as a 12- to 14-year disqualification from holding all classes of driving licence.

For the offence of possessing zombie vape pods, the Health Sciences Authority prosecutor sought eight to nine weeks in jail.

Defence lawyer Ariffin Sha, who represented Lim pro bono under the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme, read out Lim's apology letter in mitigation. Lim said he had not realised how serious the consequences would be. He now deeply regretted the loss and pain he had caused, and would carry that guilt for the rest of his life. He did not dare ask for forgiveness, but hoped his sentence would bring some comfort to the victims' families.