Two Durham cops charged in Hwy. 401 wrong-way crash that left infant, grandparents dead

The Special Investigations Unit has charged two Durham Regional Police Service officers in connection with a wrong-way crash on Highway 401.

The province’s police watchdog has charged two Durham Regional Police officers in connection with a wrong-way pursuit along Highway 401 in April that led to a head-on crash that claimed the life of an infant and his grandparents.

In a news release issued on Friday, the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) said its director, Joseph Martino, “has reasonable grounds” to believe that the officers “committed criminal offences” in the April 29 crash.

The two officers, identified as Sgt. Richard Flynn and Const. Brandon Hamilton, have been charged with three counts of criminal negligence causing death and two counts of criminal negligence causing bodily harm.

They are scheduled to appear in an Oshawa court on Feb. 13. The SIU says it is not releasing details of the investigation as the matter is now before the courts.

In a joint statement emailed to CTV News, the lawyers representing the two officers called the charges “wrong” and that they “intend to show that in court.”

“The officers' sole motivation was to save lives by alerting motorists and trying to stop a bandit who decided to put everyone in mortal danger. That bandit is the one responsible for the tragic outcome, not the police.

The collision left three-month-old Aditya Vivaan Golkunath and his grandparents, 60-year-old Manivannan Srinivasapillai and 55-year-old Mahalakshmi Ananthakrishnan, dead.

The three were travelling in a Nissan Sentra with the infant’s parents, who survived the incident. The grandparents were visiting from India to spend time with their grandson.

Meanwhile, the 21-year-old driver of the U-Haul who was being chased by police at the time of the collision also died. A passenger in the vehicle was seriously injured and has since been charged with a several offences, including robbery and failure to comply with probation.

CTV News safety analyst and former OPP commissioner Chris Lewis said he was not surprised that the SIU laid “very significant criminal” charges. He noted that if convicted, the officers could be sentenced to life in prison.

“Ultimately, this is a horrific thing. It should not have happened. The officer should have stopped the chase. And there’s just no two ways about it in my view,” Lewis said in an interview with CP24 Friday afternoon.

The chase began with a robbery at an LCBO store in Bowmanville. An off-duty police officer confronted a male suspect, who allegedly brandished a knife.

The suspect fled in a U-Haul and the officer reported the incident to the Durham police communication centre and followed him for a time.

Other officers in marked cruisers shortly caught up with the suspect, tailing him through numerous streets in Durham Region. They lost sight of the U-haul before it was located in Oshawa.

“The suspect vehicle struck a cruiser and entered eastbound Highway 401, traveling in the opposite direction of traffic,” according to police report submitted to the Durham Police Services Board in June.

“Officers re-engaged and pursued the suspect vehicle onto eastbound Highway 401, traveling westbound. The pursuit ended with the suspect vehicle being involved in a multi-vehicle head-on collision, resulting in 4 fatalities.”

A series of radio communications obtained by CTV News Toronto during the pursuit suggested up to 12 police vehicles were involved.

An Ontario Provincial Police officer who observed the wrong-way chase shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher that “someone’s going to get hurt.”

Dashcam footage sent to CP24 showed a vehicle in the right lane pulling onto the shoulder of the busy highway to avoid a van travelling towards it, as well as a police cruiser, its lights flashing, pursuing the van. A driver who was travelling in the same direction as the pursuit described the speed of the chase as “insane” when they passed him.

In June, the SIU said the involved officers did not agree to be interviewed and did not submit their notes to investigators, which is their legal right. The agency noted that more than 100 videos were obtained for the investigation.

Officers suspended with pay

Durham police Chief Peter Moreira says he respects the SIU’s decision and will await the results of the court trial.

He noted that his service was cooperative with the investigation and provided the SIU “everything that they need” to establish the facts.

The two officers have been suspended with pay per the Community Safety and Policing Act, Moreira said, adding that when they’re reinstated, they will be reinstated to administrative duties.

“The fact remains that regardless of the results of the SIU investigation, this was a tragic and catastrophic event that resulted in the death of innocent lives, devastated a family and has profoundly impacted our community, a community that also includes every member of the Durham Regional Police Service,” Moreira said during a news conference on Friday afternoon.

The chief shared that he’s in the process of reaching out to the victims’ family to express his condolences and “to listen.”

Moreira also revealed that with the conclusion of the SIU investigation, he would be conducting an internal investigation into the incident and an examination of his service’s internal procedures.

As to when his investigation will begin, the chief says he will consult with Crown attorneys so that it will not interfere with the trial.

“Our officers are often called upon to make split second decisions in an increasingly complex, dynamic and dangerous environment, and do so with a commitment to protect life and remove dangerous criminals from the streets. And we’re held accountable for our actions, whether your concern is centered on the suspected criminal who fled from the police or are concerned with the decision making of officers during this event, we must all have respect for our justice system and be patient for this process to unfold.

“We must guard against arriving at conclusions before all the evidence has been presented. We owe this not just to the family of the deceased, but also to the officers who are involved,” the Moreira said.

Sgt. Flynn has been on the job for 32 years while Const. Hamilton has been employed for four years.