By Cam Lucadou-Wells
Truckie Mohinder Bajwa Singh injected meth and was falling asleep during a shift on the day before he crashed and killed four police officers in Kew, a witness has testified.
However, Singh’s family and work colleagues have told a court they had no idea that the truck driver was on the drug ‘ice’.
Simonia Tuteru, 49, who was Singh’s supervisor at Lyndhurst-based Connect Logistics, faced manslaughter charges at a committal hearing at Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on 17-20 May.
A prosecution witness Glenys Nannup stated that she’d injected ice with Singh during his shift early on 21 April 2020 – the day before the fatal crash on the Eastern Freeway.
She hid in the back of Singh’s truck as they passed through security at a Thomastown depot.
Soon after leaving, they pulled over and shared “about three points” of ice, she stated.
On the way back to the Lyndhurst depot, Singh called her a “good witch” and talked about seeing shadows.
“It was also after we had injected that his driving turned to s***,” Ms Nannup stated to police.
“He was swerving. Shutting his eyes, as in falling to sleep. He couldn’t concentrate.”
Ms Nannup claimed Singh had boasted of being “up for six days” because of his “really good” ‘gear’.
“When I first saw him he looked all right but by the end of his shift he looked f***ed.
“I told him he should sleep.”
On the same night, James Cychowski – an Ingham’s supervisor at Thomastown – thought Singh seemed “his normal self”.
“He seemed fine. It took him one go to get onto the dock.”
Connect Logistics employee Stephen Harrison and Ingham’s acting supervisor Kerry Haitana also told the court they didn’t think Singh was on drugs.
Mr Harrison told police of a “confused” looking Singh who had told him of “personal issues” at home. Four hours before the crash, Mr Harrison texted Tuteru that Singh was “not in a good spot” and should not be driving.
Singh’s wife, son and daughter testified they had no suspicion Singh was using drugs.
On the morning of the crash, Nikita Hawthorne – who had bought cannabis off Singh – observed Singh “talking nonsense” at a house in Cranbourne, according to her police statement.
“He was saying the witches are coming and we have to leave.
“I had never seen anyone as drug f***ed in my life.
“He said he hadn’t slept for eight days. While he was talking to us he was nodding off on his seat.”
Ms Hawthorne claimed she told Singh not to drive. But he said he had to work, she stated to police.
Truckie Michael Horrocks said Singh told him at 4pm he was going to do “one important load” then go home and rest.
“He said that his boss and him prayed together and that his boss had ‘cleaned his spirit’ and got rid of the curse.
“I told him he sounded f***ing nuts.”
About 5.36 pm, Singh’s prime mover ploughed into police vehicles and an intercepted Porsche in an emergency lane on Eastern Freeway.
Victoria Police officers Leading Senior Constable Lynette Taylor, Constable Glen Humphris, Senior Constable Kevin King and Constable Joshua Prestney were killed.
Tuteru’s 82 charges include multiple breaches of the National Heavy Vehicle Law and several counts of obtaining financial advantage by deception.
The offences include causing or encouraging Singh to drive and failing to take reasonable steps to prevent Singh driving a “fatigue regulated heavy vehicle” while knowing the driver was “fatigued, impaired by drugs and unfit to drive”.
In April, Singh, of Cranbourne, was jailed for up to 22 years for culpable driving causing the officers’ deaths as well as trafficking meth, cannabis and 1,4-butanediol.
The committal hearing is ongoing. Singh is expected to testify as a prosecution witness in early June.
