Deadly wrong-way pursuit on the 401: charges filed against 2 police officers

Two police officers involved in the high-speed wrong-way chase that took place on Highway 401 and which ended with the deaths of several people are facing criminal charges.

This was confirmed by the director of the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) in a press release on Friday afternoon.

Following the investigation carried out by theUESSergeant Richard Flynn and the agent Brandon Hamilton are each subject to the following charges under the Criminal Code: criminal negligence causing death (two counts) […] and criminal negligence causing bodily harm (two counts)we read in the press release.

The two police officers are from the regional police department of Durham.

If the two co-defendants swear that they will defend themselves, a former director ofUES believes he is inconceivable that the two police officers decided to continue pursuing the van for so long.

An accident that left four dead

As many as 20 police vehicles, including at least seven wrong-way vehicles, reportedly participated in the high-speed chase of a van on Highway 401 near Toronto on April 29, 2024. This pursuit, which took place on the busiest highway in the country, resulted in a collision that left four dead.

It all started during an alleged theft in a branch of the LCBO of Bowmanvilleeast ofOshawa. Police pursued the suspect who was driving the wrong way on Highway 401 westbound.

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This chase ended with a fatal pileup of at least six vehicles at Whitbyaccording toUES.

Three of the four people killed in the pileup were from the same family. The fourth person is the passenger of the suspect vehicle.

Gokulnath Manivannan and his wife Ashwitha Jawahar lost their three-month-old son Aditya Vivaan. Mr Manivannan’s parents – who were visiting from Chennai, India – also lost their lives.

The fault of banditaccording to lawyers

In a statement Friday on behalf of the two officers who face criminal charges, attorneys Lawrence Gridin and Sandy Khehra said: The police officers’ sole motivation was to save lives by alerting motorists and trying to stop a bandit who had decided to put everyone in mortal danger. It is this bandit who is responsible for the tragic outcome, and not the police. These accusations are false and we intend to demonstrate this in court.

Me Khehra, who represents Mr. Hamiltonadded: Regardless of whether there are criminal charges, the traumatic impact of what happened that night will not be lost on my client. He and his family were very affected, as theUES accuse him or not.

Inconceivable

In August, the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), which is required to complete its investigations within 120 days, decided to extend its investigation citing the large volume of evidence to be examined.

L’UES has also clarified in the past that its investigation mainly tried to understand whether it was necessary for the Durham police to continue pursuing the suspect vehicle.

Howard Mortonwho is a former director of theUESdeclared in an interview with CBC Friday that he does not see why the police did not abandon the pursuit.

It is impossible that it was a [poursuite] necessary given that [les policiers] had to do to continue ithe said.

What were they thinking? It’s inconceivable.

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He said the event – ​​and the subsequent fatal crash – was a tragic reminder that police officers should not engage in high-speed chases. unless absolutely necessary.

Hanging

The head of the regional police department of Durham, Peter Moreira told reporters Friday afternoon that both officers had been suspended with pay because of the accusations. He specified that the agents would be assigned to administrative tasks if and when they had to be reinstated.

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Mr. Moreira said that the police in the region of Durham is now required by law to complete an internal investigation into the conduct of the police officers involved and must conduct a review of its internal procedures.

We must be wary of drawing conclusions before all the evidence is presentedhe said.

Mr. Moreira said he had contacted the family of the deceased to express his condolences.

Whatever the results of the investigationUESthis is a tragic and catastrophic event that resulted in the deaths of innocent people, devastated families and had a profound impact on our communityhe said.

The two police officers must appear before the Ontario Court of Justice located at 150 Rue Bondhas OshawaFebruary 13, 2025we read in the press release of theUES.

With information from CBC