Sydney pile-up driver misses court appearance

Top Sydney cyclists Kevin & Kate Nichols & Ben Kersten after the May 8 incident (Cyclingnews.com)

The car driver who caused a massive pile-up of elite level cyclists in Sydney, was a “no-show” for his court appearance over the incident.

Thirty four year-old Bakr Hassan, who had been charged with failing to provide his details to others involved in the May 8 crash within the required time limit, was due to answer the charges in a courtroom in the Sydney suburb of Waverley today. He phoned up and accounted for his absence, however, with the explanation that he was hundreds of miles away in Albury, waiting for his wages to come through so he could pay for the repair of a blown head gasket on his car.

The excuse is unlikely to play well with the 50 strong group of riders who had slammed into the back of Hassan’s vehicle after it had stopped suddenly on Southern Cross Drive at Mascot, before speeding off. Miraculously none of the cyclists was seriously hurt, though several required hospital treatment.

The driver later claimed on a talk radio show that the car had suffered a mechanical problem forcing the erratic manoeuvre and putting his immediate flight from the scene down to fear of the angry riders – a group that included three Olympians.

After the defendant's excuse was read out in court the presiding magistrate adjourned proceedings and the case will now be heard on July 29… possibly.

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