Army Sapper Jordan Penpraze drove like an idiot, inquiry hears Sapper Jordan Penpraze / Pic: Department of Defence Source: The Daily Telegraph AN army sapper who was driving a truck that overturned, killing a trainee army engineer, had been driving like a "dickhead" before the fatal crash and had a poor record of dangerous driving, an inquiry has heard. Army engineer Corporal Michael Vidot told a Commission of Inquiry into the death last October of 22-year-old Sapper Jordan Penpraze at the School of Military Engineering at Holsworthy that the driver, Sapper Alexander Gall, had ignored orders to drive in convoy behind a 4WD and a Unimog stores truck on the morning of the incident. He said he saw Sapper Gall take off ahead but he wasn't concerned because he had the key to the gate. Corporal Vidot said he had been told Sapper Gall had ignored 40km/h speed limits within the Holsworthy Army range at the time of the rollover. His eight-tonne truck was carrying 18 soldiers, including 16 in the back. "One of the boys said he was doing over 60 or 70km/h," Corporal Vidot told the inquiry. He was also told that someone had banged on the roof of the cab prior to the accident to tell Sapper Gall to slow down. Asked by counsel for Sapper Gall, Lieutenant Colonel David McLure, whether anyone had discussed his poor driving habits with him prior to the accident, he said the sapper had previously been spoken to about driving like a "dickhead.""He was driving too fast on occasions and trying to slide it (the truck) into a corner," he said. Corporal Vidot rejected claims by Colonel McLure that Sapper Gall should have been more closely supervised by senior soldiers. "They are drivers, they are trained to drive," he said. He conceded, had Sapper Gall's poor driving record been brought to his attention, he would have "kicked his arse" and made sure someone was on board with him. He told the inquiry that when he arrived at the accident scene Sapper Penpraze was still conscious and was trying to get to his feet. When he lost consciousness his mates were talking to him about his family and fiancee. He said Sapper Gall was hysterical. When he asked him: "What the f ... happened?" the sapper replied: "I f ... ed up."