A man who killed two people in a horrific crash on a major Sydney bridge was warned by police about speeding 10 days earlier in the same area, a court has been told.
Adeeb Sukkar, 42, was convicted of two counts of dangerous driving occasioning death after pinning two people between their damaged cars while on his way to a casino.
Amy Lim, 25, and Hongyi Zhang, 40, had stopped to exchange details on the inner-city Anzac Bridge following a minor prang shortly before midnight on December 2, 2022.
Sukkar was driving over the speed limit before he slammed his car into the back of Ms Lim's vehicle, crushing her and Mr Zhang, who both died from their injuries before paramedics arrived.
Crown prosecutor Gabrielle Steedman told a sentence hearing on Friday that Sukkar was pulled over by police 10 days before the fatal crash and issued a warning about speeding.
At the time, Sukkar was also on his way to the casino, the court was told.
“He was pulled over with lights and sirens ... in the exact same area, in similar circumstances,” Ms Steedman said.
"He was warned in relation to the importance of following the speed limit and the need to be careful.
"They had a talk to him and they let him go.”
Defence barrister Greg Stanton said allegations his client was travelling 50km/h over the speed limit at the time were not supported by any evidence.
"It did not manifest in any action taken against him by police,” Mr Stanton said.
NSW District Court Chief Judge Sarah Huggett accepted evidence did not exist to prove Sukkar was speeding on the occasion he was warned, adding the incident would not be given any weight in sentencing him.
Sukkar was sweating and breathing heavily as he sat in the dock and was checked on by his lawyers at one stage to see if he could continue.
In arguing for leniency, Mr Stanton said, without blaming the victims for their own deaths, they had placed themselves in a “precarious and treacherous” position by stopping where they did, which his client could not have expected to encounter.
“Notwithstanding his speed, notwithstanding the way in which he manoeuvres his vehicle, he comes upon a circumstance which was highly unlikely, highly improbable,” Mr Stanton said
Judge Huggett said such matters, where “good people” commit offences viewed as among the most serious by the courts, are extremely difficult.
However, she warned Sukkar who is still on bail, should prepare himself to spend time behind bars when he is sentenced next Friday.
"My view is he will be going into full-time custody next week," Judge Huggett told the court.
"Your client needs to come prepared.”
In a victim impact statement, Amy Lim's older sister Anna said she was told her badly injured sibling clung to life for five minutes following the collision.
"Apparently she was really trying hard to stay alive," Anna Lim said in the statement, which was read to the court on her behalf.
When her sister died she was just a month away from being able to go back to see her parents in her home country after being forced to remain in Australia during COVID-19.
“Finally, just when it was going to be realised for her, God let this accident happen," Anna Lim said.
She continued to blame herself for the fatal incident because her sister "wouldn't have had to die in a foreign land" if she hadn't brought her to Australia.
"I hope that everyone will cherish their loved ones," Anna Lim said.
