TAWAU: A 24-year-old Indonesian woman died in hospital hours after she was thrown from a vehicle in a road accident at Mile 16 Jalan Apas here on Wednesday afternoon.
Tawau police chief ACP Rosdi Mat Jusoh said the victim, who was a front-seat passenger in a Proton Saga heading towards Tawau from Semporna, succumbed to severe facial, bodily, and chest injuries at Tawau Hospital around six hours later.
Preliminary police investigations revealed that the 26-year-old Indonesian female driver is suspected to have fallen asleep at the wheel, causing the vehicle to veer onto the left road shoulder, hit a tree, and overturn into a drain around 3.26 pm.
Police also established that the driver, who sustained facial and neck injuries and was sent to the same hospital for treatment, was driving without a valid driving licence in a vehicle belonging to a friend.
The case is being investigated under Section 41(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987 for causing death by reckless or dangerous driving, and police have urged witnesses to come forward to assist in the probe.
