The minivan driver smashed through a minibus sign, a flower shop display and into two pedestrians, one of whom died shortly afterwards

Police arrested a driver for dangerous driving causing death yesterday afternoon after he smashed his 7-seater through a flower shop display and into a building, killing a 67-year-old pedestrian.

Police say Mr Tsoi, 60, started his car, a V6 Toyota Estima 7-seater, at 4:26pm from 141 Sai Wan Ho Street, a marked minibus stop.

A high-ranking police source requesting anonymity says the driver “just stepped on the wrong pedal when starting off”.

The driver caused significant carnage in just a short hop from his parking spot

What happened next is unclear: but several seconds later, Tsoi had smashed through the potted flowers in the minibus stop, through the minibus stop signpost, through three parked motorbikes and into two pedestrians on the pavement before crashing into 145 Sai Wan Ho Street, just 10 or 15 metres from where he had been parked.

Pedestrian victim Mr Chui, 67, was declared dead just 26 minutes after the crash while another man, Mr Wong, 51, suffered shoulder injuries and was sent conscious to Pamela Youde Nethersole Hospital.

Tsoi was arrested for dangerous driving causing death.

The whole incident happened just 200 metres from the police traffic headquarters for Hong Kong Island, on streets narrowed by constant illegal parking, congestion and pavement obstructions.

Reports of out-of-control drivers killing or injuring pedestrians on pavements have been mounting lately: officials are still stonewalling questions on two crashes and three horrific deaths in Soho and San Po Kong late last year, both incidents happening on streets studied by walkability consultants for government pedestrianisation projects.

And in January a 55-year old female Porsche driver apparently stepped on the wrong pedal, careening 50 metres into a busy Yuen Long street market. A cleaning worker hit by the sports car had a lucky escape but nobody was seriously injured in that crash.

Two people died in a San Po Kong crash (top) on New Year’s Eve 2021, while a woman was killed by a runaway car in Soho in mid-December 2021 (bottom)