Chong Chang Meng was charged under Section 41(1) of the Road Transport Act with driving dangerously and causing the death of one Tan Kean Seng at Jalan Pudu on May 8, 2016.

Justice Azhar Abdul Hamid ruled that Chong’s conviction by the magistrates’ court was unsound, as the prosecution failed to comply with certain legal requirements when tendering documents for the trial.

He also said the identity of the deceased was never established.

“No family members were called to identify (Tan as the deceased). The identification was merely done by the investigating officer.

“The pathologist was never called to testify and tender his post-mortem report – it was again tendered through the investigating officer,” he said, adding that identification is crucial in road accident cases.

The court also noted that, before the trial began in the lower court, the prosecution had provided Chong’s defence team with a copy of Tan’s post-mortem report fewer than 10 days prior.

Azhar said the law requires the prosecution to submit reports related to the case at least 10 days before the hearing begins.

“This post-mortem report cannot be admitted as evidence. With this exclusion, the prosecution’s case cannot stand regarding the cause of death,” he added.