Drunk driver kills four kids in Australia, community in shock

by Theleaders-Online | February 4, 2020 2:36 am

The builder accused of killing four children after mowing them down in his 4WD while drunk is the son of a retired police detective and had allegedly been drinking at home with friends in the lead up to the tragedy.

Samuel William Davidson is facing up to 25 years in prison if he is convicted of 20 offences including four counts of manslaughter and high-range drink driving after Saturday’s horrendous crash. He has been isolated in jail over fears for his safety.

The 29-year-old builder allegedly blew 0.150, three times over the legal blood-alcohol limit, after his Mistubishi Triton mounted the kerb and slammed into a group of seven children on a footpath at Oatlands in Sydney’s north-west.

Siblings Antony Abdallah, 13, Angelina Abdallah, 12, Sienna Abdallah, eight, and their 11-year-old cousin Veronique Sakr, were killed.

Antony was in year eight at The King’s School in North Parramatta. Angelina and Sienna went to the Tara Anglican School for Girls in the same suburb and their cousin Veronique went to Saint Sabina College in Strathfield.

Three others were seriously injured, including an 11-year-old boy and two girls, aged 10 and 13, who were taken to Westmead Children’s Hospital. The boy woke from an induced coma yesterday morning and is in a serious but stable condition. Both girls are stable.

The seven children, all from the same extended family, had been walking to buy ice cream when they were struck just before 8pm on Bettington Road, one of the main thoroughfares through Oatlands.

Witnesses told The Daily Telegraph that Davidson, who was also charged with running a red light, had allegedly been travelling on the wrong side of the road moments before the crash.

Davidson was arrested at the scene and remains in custody. He did not appear at Parramatta Bail Court on Sunday and has been refused bail until his next court appearance in April.

His passenger gave CPR to the victims while Davidson stayed at the scene until police arrived.

CCTV footage captured the vehicle travelling at speed down the street minutes earlier.

Police allege the driver had been drinking at home with friends before he got behind the wheel to withdraw cash at a service station.

He was driving back home from a Caltex on Green Street when he allegedly ran a red light before ploughing into the group of children at about 8pm.

One female driver said she witnessed the car careening towards the direction of pedestrians and honked her horn to alert the driver, to no avail.

Davidson was arrested at the scene and remains in custody. He was seen being taken away in handcuffs and shirtless.

He has not entered any pleas and did not appear at Parramatta Bail Court on Sunday where he was refused bail until his next court appearance on April 2. Before the crash he was not known to police.

Neighbours said that Davidson – the son of a retired NSW Police detective – and two friends had recently moved into a rented home in Oatlands, which was described as a ‘typical kind of bachelor house’.

Police claim Davidson had been drinking with friends at home before he got behind the wheel of his ute. He drove to a Caltex service station about 1.8km away from his Oatlands home to get cash. While on his way home, he allegedly ran a red light before crashing into a group of seven children.

Veronique’s family said in the statement released on Sunday they were ‘devastated’ by the loss of ‘our beautiful girl’ in the horrific crash.

‘Veronique was a vibrant 11-year old girl, full of life, love and had a maturity well beyond her young years,’ the family statement said.

A schoolgirl who was killed alongside her three cousins was identified as 11-year-old Veronique Sakr. Veronique’s family said in the statement released on Sunday they were ‘devastated’ by the loss of ‘our beautiful girl’ in the horrific crash

‘Drop blood alcohol level to zero’

Experts have called for an overhaul of Australia’s drink-driving laws in the wake of the Oatlands tragedy that left four young children dead.

Dr John Crozier, of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, suggested a zero-tolerance approach in NSW in a bid to curb drunk-driving related deaths.

The legal blood-alcohol concentration limit for driving in Australia is currently 0.05 per cent.

Dr Crozier said the government should follow in the footsteps of European countries such as Slovakia and Romania, where the legal limit is 0.00, or Scandinavian countries, where it has been lowered to 0.02.

‘We have it as a requirement for all commercial drivers and poignant deaths like this, it’s reasonable to further explore whether we should have a zero blood-alcohol requirement for all drivers,’ he told The Daily Telegraph.

On the accused, one neighbour said, ‘They seemed like normal young guys, they introduced themselves and said they would have the odd party but if it got too loud, just to tell them,’ the resident said.

Davidson appeared to flaunt his partying lifestyle on Facebook, often sharing photos of himself beer-in-hand at events with friends.

In other posts he shared his excitement for upcoming dance parties across Sydney.

Friends of the accused have expressed their shock over his alleged involvement in the tragedy, with one describing him as ‘one of the nicest blokes’.

‘It’s a horrible and truly shocking day for everyone involved. Those poor babies, their poor parents, Sam’s poor parents,’ another friend, who did not wish to be named, told Daily Mail Australia.

Police will investigate Davidson’s phone records and toxicology tests are underway to determine whether the driver had other substances in his system.

Acting Assistant Police Commissioner Jason Joyce said the driver remained at the scene until the police arrived and there were indications his 24-year-old passenger tried to help some of the children. Neither the driver nor the passenger was injured.

In a press conference on Sunday, NSW Police assistant commissioner Michael Corboy became emotional as he said the accused was looking at the maximum penalty for the alleged manslaughter.

‘Manslaughter charges carry the ultimate penalty, so lengthy jail periods at the maximum. We think we have a very strong briefing,’ he told reporters when asked about the punishment the alleged offender could receive.

The maximum sentence for manslaughter in New South Wales is 25 years.

Joyce described the children’s death as a ‘tragedy we haven’t seen for some time’.

Earlier, the three siblings’ father, Danny Abdallah, 41, addressed the media saying his children ‘were in a better place.’

He revealed his final words to his kids were, ‘go for a little walk, stay together, you guys should be OK.’

‘Give them a little bit of independence. This is one in a million. They were just walking on the footpath,’ he said.

The father-of-six said all seven children involved in the tragedy were related and were staying at the Abdallah house.

‘I don’t know what to say. I’m numb,’ Mr Abdallah said. ‘All I want to say is please, drivers, be careful.

‘These kids were just walking innocently, enjoying each other’s company … and this morning I woke up and I have lost three kids. Please, just, make sure you love your loved ones, your kids especially.

The devastated father meanwhile described Angelina as his ‘little helper’.

‘Anything I needed, she had my back,’ he said. ‘And Sienna, she was my little diva. My little actress. They’ve gone to a better place.’

Abdallah and his wife Leila had had six children. Veronique was his cousin’s daughter.

On Sunday, Veronique’s family released a statement saying they were ‘devastated by the tragic and senseless loss of our beautiful girl’.

‘Words cannot describe the pain we feel for all the families impacted by this tragedy,’ the family said.

‘Veronique was a vibrant 11-year-old girl, full of life, love and had a maturity well beyond her young years.

‘Veronique brought us all such joy and will be forever remembered. Veronique will remain in our hearts always.

‘We would like to thank the emergency services, first responders and all who attended the tragic scene.

‘God bless you, Veronique.’

In a statement shared online on Sunday afternoon, Santa Sabina College principal Paulina Skerman said Veronique had ‘tragically lost her life last night along with three of her cousins’.

Emergency service crews described being confronted with ‘carnage and chaos’ on arrival at the scene.

Police said on Sunday Davidson did not try to flee the scene after the alleged accident and his passenger attempted to perform CPR.

Assistant commissioner Corboy added, however, that the driver refused to be interviewed by police and they were building a case against him after conversations with witnesses.

‘I’d like to send the message out today that drink-driving, speeding, poor behaviour on the roads, will not be tolerated,” Corboy said.

‘Tragedies do occur, but in my time in policing, this is one of the most tragic involving young children dying.’

Davidson has been charged with 20 offences including four counts of manslaughter, four counts of dangerous driving occasioning death while driving under the influence, four counts of dangerous driving occasioning death while driving in a dangerous manner, two counts of causing bodily harm by misconduct while in charge of a motor vehicle and negligent driving.

The street is now lined with flowers, balloons and condolence messages to the victims and their families

Panicked onlookers were seen pleading with police to be let past cordons, while women sobbed as they hugged and consoled each other.

The tragedy has rocked the close-knit community, where the family is well known.

‘I can’t even comprehend it,’ a friend of the father told The Sunday Telegraph.

‘He has six kids – he’s lost half his family. They’ve lived here for years – [the father’s] a builder – everyone around here knows him.’

One neighbour recalled the frantic efforts of residents moments after the crash.

‘People ran over and were doing CPR until the paramedics got here. One woman was screaming out: ‘Save them, save them’,’ they said.

Another described hearing brakes squealing and a ‘great big crash’ which left skid marks on the road and footpath.

The victims’ families are believed to be members of the local Maronite Christian community.

‘Tonight before you sleep we ask that you remember in your prayers a young Maronite family from our Parish who has been devastatingly affected by a serious accident,’ the Living Maronite Facebook page posted.

‘We keep them all in our prayers.’

‘Please pray for the Maronite family who were involved in that accident tonight in Oatlands. May the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace,’ a parishioner wrote.

The first paramedics who arrived on scene dealt with harrowing scenes.

‘They were confronted with carnage – a very difficult scene and a lot of chaos,’ NSW Ambulance Inspector Andrew McAlpine told reporters.

‘This is an incredibly hard time for emergency services, notwithstanding the loss the families have sustained.’

‘It’s incredibly difficult for police, fire rescue and the ambos to be confronted with such chaos and carnage.’

Two police chaplains also attended to support emergency responders and witnesses at what Acting NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Jason Joyce described as a tragic scene.

‘Police did a fantastic job in trying circumstances at the scene but what we were doing is our job and out thoughts and prayers are with the families that have been touched by this incident,’ he said.

He said police currently have few answers for the heartbroken families involved.

A large gathering of distressed family and friends comforted each other outside the hospital where the three surviving children were recovering.

‘They’re obviously very distraught and under these circumstances we can’t provide much information to them at this stage so that’s difficult for them,’ Acting Assistant Commissioner Joyce said.

‘But we’re trying to give them as much support as we can. A number of family members are at the hospital and we’re trying to help them through this really difficult time.’

Footage of the crash scene showed police cordons and extensive damage to the blue Mitsubishi 4WD’s front bonnet.

‘A horrific accident in Oatlands this evening. My heart goes out to those involved, their loved ones, friends and first responders,’ Parramatta councillor Donna Davis wrote.

The Daily Mail UK

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