Mother whose daughter died in one of the most horrific road tragedies in Australia’s history unleashes on the ‘slap on the wrist’ sentence for Ezra Mam after his cocaine-fuelled crash

The mother of Oatlands crash victim Veronique Sakr claims she has felt ‘sick’ after Ezra Mam’s ‘slap on the wrist’ punishment, adding the NRL star’s punishment has ‘re-traumatised’ her.

Mam, 21, was fined $850 and banned from driving for six months after pleading 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 which took place on October 18 in Bardon, Brisbane. It was believed he had failed a roadside drug test after his Ford Ranger crashed in a head-on collision with an Uber taxi.

The NRL’s Integrity Unit is conducting an investigation into the matter and has been called on by some, including Bridget Sakr, to respond heavily to the half back.

“I thought it was a shame and it traumatized me again,” Sakr said The Daily Telegraphthinking about mom’s punishment.

Her partner, Craig Mackenzie, added that the court’s decision left him ‘scratched’.

Sakr and her husband lost their daughter Veronique, 11 years old, 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 creams in Sydney’s northwestern suburbs when Samuel William Davidson drove into them. The four children died tragically.

Davidson was given a 28-year prison sentence in April 2021, with a non-parole period of 21 years. But in 2022, his sentence was reduced by the New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal. The court concluded that Davidson’s sentence was excessive and reduced his sentence to twenty years, with a non-parole period of fifteen years.

There is no allegation that Mam had been drinking or speeding at the time of his incident, with the facts being different from the Oatlands case. But an ‘furious’ Bridget Sakr spoke out about Mam’s sentence, claiming it sends the wrong message to the Australian community.

‘Monday, the same day, the [Mam] court case [was announced]my daughter celebrated her 16th birthday in heaven. She is no longer with us,” Sakr said.

‘I don’t want another family to celebrate their child’s birthday when they can’t blow out the candles themselves. It is the most painful thing a parent can experience,” she said.

‘I have a photo of Veronique with a cake with 16 on it, but there is no Veronique. What would have happened if those involved in the (Mom) accident had died?

“And this person gets a slap on the wrist – what is that? What does society learn from that punishment? It made me furious, it’s unacceptable. I feel sick because I know what it feels like. I have had the experience of losing my flesh and blood.

‘How do people get away with this? What message does this sentence send to the Australian community, that someone who gets behind the wheel has taken drugs – and they know what the consequences can be – that they cannot control their fate.”

Radio presenter Mark Levy also claimed Mam’s sentence was not harsh enough and called on the NRL to ban him until 2026.

However, Sakr called on the league to take a more aggressive stance and suspend the half-back for much longer.

‘You can do whatever you want if you are a public profile or a professional footballer?’ she said. ‘Will you be exonerated for your misdeeds? The NRL and the Broncos cannot tiptoe, they must take a tough stance. Someone has to stand up.

‘He [Mam] must be suspended for five years – to feel the impact of what that means. No one else dares to do anything harsh – a five-year ban for anyone who does this. Their careers would have been ruined for taking that risk.”

Mom, who had been admitted to a rehabilitation center after the traffic incident, had admitted his remorse after his appearance in court.

“To the people involved in the accident, I am truly sorry. This incident does not reflect what I want to become and what is expected of me as a role model,” Mom had said.

“To the NRL, Brisbane Broncos, the fans, my family – I’m sorry. I promise to work on becoming a better person.”

New Brisbane boss Michael Maguire previously confirmed Mam’s five-year, $4 million contract with the club would not be terminated following the incident.

But on Monday, Magistrate Mark Nolan claimed Mam’s actions were ‘stupid’, before adding that Mam should ‘learn from the incident’.

“On this particular occasion you should not have been driving because you did not have a driver’s license,” the magistrate said.

‘After you made that stupid decision to get behind the wheel of the car and also use illegal substances… a cocktail of cocaine and other things found in your blood on this occasion.

“On so many levels, you’re lucky to be where you are right now… you could have been hurt or killed, or the other individuals could have been hurt or killed.

“There is no place for illegal drugs in our community, and there is certainly no place for someone who uses illegal drugs to get behind the wheel of a car.

“You have to learn from this.”

But Paul McGirr, a leading Sydney criminal lawyer, has also said he would be “extremely surprised if the Crown did not appeal this particular case.”

He told The Daily Telegraph: ‘As a criminal lawyer I don’t like to comment on lenient sentences, but this sentence was certainly extremely lenient.

“There are two objectives in imposing sentences. One is specific deterrence, and I am 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 look up to these icons see a man of the same age who has drunk a cocktail of drugs, knowing that he is not allowed to drive because he has lost his driver’s license, in a vehicle, write off two vehicles and injure three people.

‘I ask the question: does this punishment pass the pub test when it comes to a fine and not a conviction? According to the people I’ve spoken to and other legal professionals, it definitely doesn’t pass the pub test. And I say that as a criminal lawyer.’