The mother of Oatlands crash victim Veronique Sakr claims she felt “sick” after Ezra Mam’s “slap on the wrist” punishment, adding the NRL star’s sentence has “made her traumatize”.
Mam, 21, was fined $850 and banned from driving for six months after he pleaded guilty to one count of driving while a relevant drug was present in the blood and driving without a licence.
The Brisbane Broncos player also avoided a criminal conviction for the incident that occurred on October 18 in Bardon, Brisbane. It was understood he had allegedly failed a roadside drugs test after his Ford Ranger crashed in a head-on collision with an Uber taxi.
The NRL Integrity Unit is carrying out an investigation into the matter and has been called on by some, including Bridget Sakr, to come down heavily on the outlet.
“I thought it was embarrassing and it has re-traumatized me,” Sakr told The daily telegraphreflecting on mom’s punishment.
His partner, Craig Mackenzie, added that the court’s decision left him “sick to my stomach”.
Ezra Mam was fined $850 and given a six-month driving suspension on Monday.
Bridget Sakr (left) and Craig Mackenzie (right), the parents of one of the victims of the 2020 Oatlands crash, said they were “furious” about the penalty imposed on Mam.
Mam’s punishment (pictured) has been criticized by some as being too lenient, with Sakr claiming she had been left “retraumatised” by the ruling.
Sakr and her husband lost their daughter, 11-year-old Veronique, in February 2020.
She and her cousins, Sienna Abdallah, 8, and her siblings Anthony, 13, and Angelina, 12, were walking along a sidewalk to buy ice cream in Sydney’s northwest suburb when Samuel William Davidson ran over them. All four children died tragically.
Davidson was sentenced to 28 years in prison in April 2021, with a non-parole period of 21 years. But in 2022, the New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal slashed his sentence. The court concluded that Davidson’s sentence was excessive and reduced it to 20 years, with a non-parole period of 15 years.
There is no allegation that Mum had been drinking or speeding at the time of her incident, the facts being different to those in the Oatlands case. But an “angry” Bridget Sakr has spoken out about Mam’s sentence, saying it sends the wrong message to the Australian community.
‘On Monday, the same day (Mom’s court case was announced), my daughter celebrated her 16th birthday in heaven. He is no longer with us,” Sakr said.
‘I don’t want any other family to celebrate their child’s birthday without being able to blow out the candles themselves. “It’s the most painful thing a parent can go through,” he said.
‘I have a photo of Veronique with a cake with 16, but Veronique is not there. What would have happened if those who suffered the accident (Mam) had died?
‘And this person gets a slap on the wrist, what is that? What does society learn from that pain? It made me angry, it’s unacceptable. I feel bad because I know what it feels like. I have lived the experience of losing my flesh and blood.
Four children died in Oatlands, northwest of Sydney, after being hit by a man who was driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs.
‘How can people get away with this? What message does this punishment send to the Australian community, that someone who gets behind the wheel having used substances (and knows what the consequences may be) cannot control their destiny?
Radio presenter Mark Levy also claimed Mam’s punishment was not strong enough and called on the NRL to ban him until 2026.
Sakr, however, called on the league to take a more aggressive stance and suspend the half for much longer.
‘Can you do whatever you want if you are a public profile person or a professional footballer?’ She said. ‘Do you receive an exemption for your bad actions? The NRL and the Broncos should not be tiptoeing around, they need to take a tough stance. Someone has to step forward.
‘He (Mam) should be banned for five years, to feel the impact of what that means. No one else dares to do anything harsh – a five-year suspension for anyone who does this. “Their career would be ruined because they took that risk.”
Mam, who had entered a rehabilitation center after the traffic incident, admitted her regret after her court appearance.
‘To the people involved in the accident, I am very sorry. “This incident is not a reflection of who I want to be and what is expected of me as a role model,” Mom had said.
‘To the NRL, the Brisbane Broncos, the fans, my family, I’m sorry. “I promise to work to be a better person.”
Mom had allegedly failed a roadside drug test after being involved in a head-on traffic collision.
His Ford Ranger crashed into an Uber taxi in which a mother and her four-year-old daughter were traveling.
New Brisbane boss Michael Maguire previously confirmed Mam’s five-year, $4 million contract at the club would not be terminated following the incident.
But on Monday, magistrate Mark Nolan said Mam’s actions were “stupid” before adding that Mam “had to learn” from the incident.
“On this particular occasion he should not have been driving because he did not have a licence,” the magistrate said.
‘Having made that stupid decision to get behind the wheel of the car, in addition to consuming illicit substances as well… a cocktail of cocaine and other materials that were found in his blood on this occasion.
‘On many levels you are lucky to be where you are today… you could have been hurt or killed, or the other people could have been hurt or killed.
‘There is no place for illicit drugs in our community, and there is certainly no place for a person who uses illicit drugs to get behind the wheel of a car.
“You have to learn from this.”
But Paul McGirr, a prominent Sydney criminal lawyer, has also said he would be “extremely surprised if the Crown did not appeal this particular matter”.
Mum has spoken of her remorse for the incident and has offered apologies to those involved in the incident.
He told the Daily Telegraph: ‘As a criminal lawyer I don’t like to comment on lenient sentences, but certainly this sentence was extremely lenient.
“There are two objectives in the sentence. One is specific deterrence, and I’m sure Mr. Mam will learn from this, as he told everyone in his prepared speech, and the second is general deterrence.
“The big concern I have is the fact that other 21-year-olds who admire these icons, see a man of the same age who has taken a cocktail of drugs, knowing that he should not be driving because he has lost his license, go into one vehicle, wrote off two vehicles and injured three people.
‘I ask the question: Does this sentence pass the publicity test regarding a fine and no conviction? According to people I have spoken to and other legal professionals, it really doesn’t pass the pub test. And I say that as a criminal defense attorney.’