KUALA LUMPUR – The bus driver involved in the fatal bus crash in Gerik which claimed the lives of 15 Universiti Perguruan Sultan Idris (Upsi) students on Monday have been arrested by the police.
Perak police chief Datuk Noor Hisam Nordin said that the driver was arrested at 5.45 pm today after he was discharged from Hospital Taiping today.
The man, who broke his left arm in the accident will be taken to Gerik district police headquarters to assist with their investigation under Section 41(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987 for causing death by dangerous driving.
“We are waiting for further instructions from the public prosecutor’s office on whether the driver can be charged at the court tomorrow,” Noor Hisam told the media.
Police had reportedly revealed on Tuesday that the driver, who was identified as 39-year-old Mohd Amirul Fadhil Zulkifle, had 18 unsettled traffic summonses, including 13 for speeding, one for a prior accident, three for failing to wear a seat belt, and one for a malfunctioning third brake light.
Bukit Aman Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department director Datuk Seri Mohd Yusri Hassan Basri confirmed the summonses, adding that the bus involved also had a troubling history of 21 traffic offences.
The bus, which brought 42 students from UPSI, crashed at KM53 of East-West Highway in Gerik while en route from Jertih, Terengganu to the university’s main campus in Tanjung Malim, Perak.
According to Transport Minister Anthony Loke, the bus was not equipped with passenger seat belts as he explained that the vehicle was manufactured in 2013, seven years before seat belt installation became mandatory for newly built buses.
The transport ministry is now reviewing proposals to make seat belt usage compulsory on all express buses, regardless of their manufacturing date. – June 12, 2025