A father of five, Jawad Al Hussein, aged 43, narrowly avoided jail time after driving into a flooded creek, resulting in the drowning of his two friends, Bob Chahine and Ghosn Ghosn, in 2022. During a sentencing hearing in Newcastle, District Court Judge Julia Baly highlighted Al Hussein’s serious miscalculation of the risks involved when he drove his Mitsubishi Triton ute into the fast-moving waters, with his friends standing on the vehicle’s tray alongside a dog.
Al Hussein managed only a short distance of approximately two metres before the ute stalled and became uncontrollable. Tragically, neither of his friends could swim, and they were either forced to jump from the ute or fell as it was swept downstream. Their bodies were discovered days later, scattered up to two kilometres from the incident site near Goulburn in southern New South Wales.
In her sentencing, Judge Baly expressed that the dangers were clear, emphasising the bad weather conditions, road closures, and the fact that the causeway was flooded. She sentenced Al Hussein to a 10-month intensive corrections order, alongside 350 hours of community service and a two-year disqualification from driving. While this sanction is akin to a prison sentence in the community under strict supervision, Al Hussein had previously been acquitted of manslaughter and dangerous driving causing death in a trial in Goulburn District Court.
Judge Baly remarked on Al Hussein’s overconfidence with the vehicle and his inadequate consideration for the safety of his passengers, particularly knowing they could not swim and would be exposed to hazardous conditions. She pointed out that there was no urgency to cross the floodwaters to reach his hobby farm, underscoring a lack of reasonable care expected from a prudent driver in such scenarios.
Al Hussein reportedly felt immense devastation and remorse over the incident and would have to carry the emotional burden for the rest of his life. After the accident, he and another man in the cab managed to escape through the windows and swim to safety while watching their friends disappear into the darkness. He endeavoured to find phone reception for nearly an hour before he could call emergency services, desperately pleading for help and expressing his sorrow over the loss of his friends.