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INAshton Friend spared jail time over death of Samia Malik in Hillcrest crash after leaving scene - A driver who thought he had hit a kangaroo has been spared jail after fatally striking a woman kneeling on a busy road - and leaving the scene.
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Leah Smith
Court Reporter
October 9, 2026 - 5:41PM
A driver who “carelessly” killed a woman in a “tragic” crash had just had 2.25 seconds to avoid the fatal collision - and should have never left the scene, a court has heard.
Ashton Jacob Friend, 20, was silent as Judge Anne Barnett suspended his jail term for hitting and killing 20-year-old Greenacres woman, Samia Malik, in front of a petrol station and the Windsor Hotel on May 6, 2025.
The court heard witnesses and CCTV from the nearby servo showed Ms Malik standing and kneeling in the middle of North East Rd, Hillcrest, for almost four minutes - and appeared to be praying prior to the collision.
Ashton Friend, 20, has avoided jail after causing death by careless use of a vehicle and leaving an accident scene.
CCTV footage showed Ms Malik kneeling on the road. Picture: Supplied
Judge Barnett said Friend was not influenced by drugs or alcohol, was travelling below the posted speed limit and had been looking in his rearview mirror in the mere seconds he would have had to avoid her.
“You had approximately 2.25 seconds from the moment your headlights would have detected (Ms Malik) until impact,” Judge Barnett said.
“The reconstruction expert opines only that you may have, in light of that time frame, been able to avoid the collision or minimise your speed.”
Judge Barnett said the Banksia Park man had initially be unaware of what he had hit.
“You initially thought that you’d hit a kangaroo, that you hadn’t seen anyone when you were driving and there were no lights in the middle of the road, but you heard a noise under your car and saw reference to the incident on the news the next day,” Judge Barnett said.
Samia Malik, the young woman killed in the hitrun last May in Hillcrest. Picture: Supplied
“Your counsel submitted that you did not have an appreciation at first that you had hit a person, however upon seeing a news report you had to face the realisation that they knew.
“The community is entitled to expect that motorists will remain vigilant and attentive while driving and be prepared to respond appropriately to unforeseen events.”
Friend, 20, pleaded guilty to causing death by careless use of a vehicle and leaving the accident scene after causing death.
Ms Malik’s sister, Qudsiya Malik, said her home and family were no longer the same and Ms Malik would be missed “every single day”.
Police released this image of a car they wanted after the collision.
“Grief has become part of my everyday life and there are moments when the pain feels just as fresh as it did on the day we lost her,” Ms Malik said.
Friend previously apologised to the court for causing “indescribable pain” to Ms Malik’s family after admitting he had his “head in the sand” when fleeing the scene.
Judge Barnett sentenced Friend to one year, three months and 29 days imprisonment with a non-parole period of eight months.
Her Honour found good reason to suspend the sentence due Friend’s youth, genuine remorse, good prospects for rehabilitation and the circumstance of the offending on a $500 good behaviour bond for two years.
This is the one part that's throwing me off. In American terms sounds about equivalent to hitting a doe and when you hit a deer you pull over as soon as possible. Your car can be fucked up and the road can be unsafe
This is the one part that's throwing me off. In American terms sounds about equivalent to hitting a doe and when you hit a deer you pull over as soon as possible. Your car can be fucked up and the road can be unsafe
With roos it can really vary. A small eastern grey hopping across the road might hit on the side and barely dent you. A dead one on the road might be the size of a dog. A big red on the other hand can definitely fuck you up.
You really only stop if the impact was bad enough to warrant it. If this guy really thought he’d hit a small dead roo then driving on makes sense.
Important to remember: kangaroos don’t stand in the road. They are hit because they’re hopping across the road. This guy’s story only makes sense if he thought it was already dead on the road. I think it’s just as likely he panicked when he saw it was a crazy woman. Either way, poor kid.
I think the culture there is that if a retarded roo gets under your tires and your vehicle isn't damaged then you just keep going. It's probably very common and not even a priority for animal control.
Meanwhile, this was a moslem pulling a power move trying to make any traffic on the road stop for her. She got exactly what she deserved and this man should not have faced charges.
This is the one part that's throwing me off. In American terms sounds about equivalent to hitting a doe and when you hit a deer you pull over as soon as possible. Your car can be fucked up and the road can be unsafe
It threw me a bit too as the only time I hit a deer I was doing 70 and the deer literally exploded, destroyed the engine and left the entire front end covered in guts and blood. I still remember blood and car fluids pooling under the car, and the smell too.
I guess if it was a glancing blow that could happen. But I still would have stopped to check damage to the car. Would at least want to make sure the car was safe to drive.
Jesus. The last time we hit a kangaroo we were going about 55mph, on the front left corner and light, and nothing that dramatic happened. I remember the light reflecting off its eyes (this was at night) as it hopped in front from the left. We went back the next day and it was dead but basically intact, as was our car.
People shouldn’t stand in or cross a road at night, but people who accidentally hit an object should stop and pull over to the side. There is this one incident that happened years ago in my city where this driver was driving at night and hit a person who was about to cross the busy road. She didn’t stop because she thought that she hit a pig. The person who she hit died. The driver went to jail for six months. A lot of people disliked her because she was driving drunk and didn’t stop after she hit the person. But the person was about to cross a dangerous road at night that wasn’t at an intersection with a stoplight. So it’s hard to defend the driver or the victim in these cases.
Jesus. The last time we hit a kangaroo we were going about 55mph, on the front left corner and light, and nothing that dramatic happened. I remember the light reflecting off its eyes (this was at night) as it hopped in front from the left. We went back the next day and it was dead but basically intact, as was our car.
I hit the deer center mass while on the highway at night. It walked out in front of me and looked right at me. I had no chance to evade it. It simply dissapeared. There was probably body parts scattered around the road but it was dark and I was going downhill so I kept the car rolling until I got to a safe place to pull off.
In Muslim countries, doesn't the traffic stop in midday for everyone to get out of their cars and pray, 5 times a day? How long until the fallen nations of the West must adopt those traffic rules?
Nah, the old school ones just stop talking or working if they're outside if they hear the prayer call. Kind of like how one is supposed to do with the national anthem in the US. The younger generation doesn't care unless there are old folks watching.
In Muslim countries, doesn't the traffic stop in midday for everyone to get out of their cars and pray, 5 times a day? How long until the fallen nations of the West must adopt those traffic rules?
Not hitting people in the road requires them to at least act like rational people.
You have a higher chance of hitting someone kneeling in the road because it's just so astoundingly stupid, when you SEE what's apparently someone kneeling in the road, your instincts immediately say "that's gotta be an animal, no human being would do that".
People shouldn’t stand in or cross a road at night, but people who accidentally hit an object should stop and pull over to the side. There is this one incident that happened years ago in my city where this driver was driving at night and hit a person who was about to cross the busy road. She didn’t stop because she thought that she hit a pig. The person who she hit died. The driver went to jail for six months. A lot of people disliked her because she was driving drunk and didn’t stop after she hit the person. But the person was about to cross a dangerous road at night that wasn’t at an intersection with a stoplight. So it’s hard to defend the driver or the victim in these cases.
Used to be that if you did your due diligence? You'd be good to go. The person who jaywalked in the dark would be cited on top of the ambulance ride.
But that's no longer the case, now? It's the same as the ghetto lottery with cops.
You face an unknown amount of time being punished by process as first criminal and then civil courts will tear you to shreds no matter how drunk/schizo/careless the person you hit was. It was 100% your fault and you were deliberately being malicious about it. Even if there's video footage showing you weren't speeding, weren't on a phone, and your paperwork is all up to date? It was all your fault.
Doesn't matter they had a BAC of .16, tested positive for coke, were wearing all-black clothes and tried to cross a divided highway where pedestrtians aren't even allowed.
If you hit them? Your life is basically over as the liberalized justice system always takes the side of the lesser power - and if you had a car and they didn't? Well, it's clear who victimized who, now, isn't it?
We're creating the same situation as China where they'll back over you to finish you off so you can't sue them for a lifetime of gibs, just one lump sum for the family.
I'd probably keep driving too.
Stopping is for chumps who still think we live in a high-trust society.
