Gurmit Singh gets 3-month driving ban, fine for speeding
Actor Gurmit Singh was fined $800 and banned from driving for three months after pleading guilty to speeding yesterday.
He was caught driving at about 131kmh on a road with a 70kmh speed limit in April. His 19-year-old son was in the car with him at the time.
Singh, 56, is known for his role in local sitcom Phua Chu Kang. The celebrity, whose full name is Gurmit Singh Virk Chainchal Singh, did not have any prior conviction.
At about 9.30pm on April 12, Singh was caught speeding along Woodlands Avenue 12 towards Seletar Expressway. He was believed to have been driving an Audi A8 L.
Singh told the court he heard a "flapping sound" coming from the car when he was driving, and wanted his son to hear it too.
The father of three said he was on his way to pick up his son, who was doing an internship at the time.
He said: "After I got him, I wanted him to hear the same sound, and I realised it comes out at 100kmh. I'm not saying I should drive at that speed... but it was just a short spurt."
In court yesterday, Singh was chided by District Judge Salina Ishak, who told him he had put his son's life in danger.
Singh replied that he regretted what he did. He also said it was his wife who drove him to court yesterday, and that he was hoping to keep his licence and pay the fine.
After leaving court, Singh posted a video on his Instagram account. In the nine-second clip, he said: "I just want to say I'm sorry, and I hope to do better." The post received many messages of support from netizens.
Singh has owned fast cars such as a Lamborghini, as well as an Audi S5 and a Honda Phantom TA-200 motorcycle. He could have been jailed for up to three months or fined up to $1,000 for speeding.
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