Kpod user who drove against traffic, causing crash, jailed in first such case since etomidate listed as drug

At about 8.50pm on Jan 3 this year, shortly after smoking Kpods, Ng drove his car along Pasir Ris Drive 1 towards Pasir Ris Drive 8 and turned right.

He turned into the wrong lane as he momentarily lost consciousness and went onto an adjacent carriageway along Pasir Ris Drive 6, against the flow of traffic.

The victim saw Ng’s car approaching him at a slow speed and braked and sounded his horn, but Ng continued driving forward, narrowly missing two motorcyclists.

One of them kicked Ng’s car to warn him that he was driving against the flow of traffic, but Ng kept going.

The victim reversed his car to avoid a collision, but Ng’s car hit his vehicle, scratching it and ripping off a small portion of its front.

No one was injured. The victim spent S$490.50 to repair his vehicle.

The victim called the police, who found vape-related items in Ng’s car.

A further search uncovered vaporisers and pods on Ng, and etomidate was found in his blood.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Darren Ang said in court that etomidate is a hypnotic that is meant to be intravenously injected under medical supervision to induce general anaesthesia. It is not meant to be inhaled through vapes without careful dosage considerations.

“When inhaled, etomidate can result in psychiatric symptoms and other medical issues, some of which have been linked to traffic accidents and unnatural deaths,” said Mr Ang.

He noted the “sheer prevalence” of etomidate-related offences, saying that authorities have caught and penalised 2,589 people for possession and use of vapes, of which 377 were Kpod offenders from January to March this year.

Between 2023 and 2025, there were 38 traffic accidents linked to drug and etomidate use, of which 19 were fatal, and of these, nine involved etomidate, said Mr Ang, citing a Straits Times report.