Parents of baby killed in Whitby crash were also in the car

Ontario | Ajax | Clarington | Durham | Oshawa | Pickering | Whitby | Crime | Latest News | Police |

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Published May 2, 2024 at 2:54 pm

Ontario, Whitby, Highway 401, collision, head-on, grandparents,
The names of the grandparents killed in a horrific wrong way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby on Monday were identified on Friday night.

The Special Investigations Unit has released more details about those killed in Tuesday’s Highway 401 crash.

Durham Police began a pursuit after a U-Haul cube van fled the scene of an LCBO robbery in Clarington. The van fled the store at Green Road and Highway 2 shortly before 8 p.m. on April 30.

Officers followed the car for more than 20 minutes into Oshawa. The van got on Highway 401 the wrong way at Stevenson Road and continued to drive against heavy traffic.

Several police cruisers followed the car against traffic for several minutes into Whitby. Video captured by surrounding vehicles shows the van moving at speed as heavy oncoming traffic swerved to avoid it.

Just east of Highway 412, the van collided with other vehicles including a a Nissan Sentra sedan and a transport truck. A total of six cars were involved in the crash, the SIU said.. The grandparents, 60 and 55, and the three-month-old infant were killed in the collision, as was the driver of the U-Haul, 21.

On May 2, the SIU confirmed the parents of the baby were in the car as well. The father, 33, and mother, 27 of Ajax, survived the crash. The mother received serious injuries and both were rushed to hospital. The grandparents were visiting from India.

A second man, 38, was pulled out of the U-Haul alive and taken to hospital for treatment of serious injuries. The trucker in the transport was extracted as well.

Given the police pursuit, the SIU was called in to investigate the circumstances of the crash. They’ve assigned seven investigators, one forensic investigator and one collision deconstructionist to the case. The SIU conducted autopsies on those killed on May 1.

Two officers are the subject of the investigation, while another four have been identified as witnesses. Durham Police cannot comment on the investigation until complete.

“This incident has had a profound impact on our community and our members. We understand there are many questions, however there is a legislated process regarding investigations conducted by the SIU we must adhere to,” they wrote.

“Durham Police is fully cooperating with the SIU and as such are unable to make a public statement on this incident,” they continued, “At this time, our thoughts are with those impacted by this tragedy.”

Anyone with information can call the SIU at 1-800-787-8529 or online.

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