WARMINGTON: Suspected LCBO bandit on bail at time of deadly 401 crash

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The driver of a van killed in a head-on crash that also claimed three innocent lives as he fled from cops speeding the wrong way on Hwy. 401 in Whitby, allegedly after an attempted LCBO robbery, was facing charges for two other liquor store robberies.

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Gagandeep Singh, who was allegedly armed with a knife at the time of the police pursuit, was released on $2,000 bail this winter by a Justice of the Peace in a Hamilton court and was set to return to Milton court on May 14.

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But the 21-year-old won’t be making that court date after driving the U-Haul cargo van westbound in the eastbound lanes – allegedly in an effort to evade Durham Regional Police officers after Monday’s attempted heist in Bowmanville – and crashing into a Nissan Sentra, killing a baby and his grandparents who were visiting from India.

The three-month-old Ajax boy’s mother and father were also injured in the collision, as was a 38-year-old man who was a passenger in the cargo van.

The incident that prompted the deadly wrong-way police chase allegedly began after the now-deceased suspect pulled a knife on an off-duty Durham Regional Police officer. Sources say decisions to proceed with a pursuit were not solely related to the alleged theft at an LCBO store.

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Singh, sources say, has been in Canada for a short time as a foreign student from India but had fallen into a narcotics dependency.

Court records show Singh – born July 7, 2002 – was facing three theft under $5,000 charges – for allegedly stealing merchandise from a Home depot in Milton on Jan. 15, a Burlington LCBO store on Jan. 28, and a Home depot in Milton on Feb. 27. He was also facing a robbery charge for allegedly stealing merchandise from an LCBO in Oakville on Jan. 26.

None of those charges had been tested in court.

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Justice sources in several policing regions indicate Singh was also before the courts for carjacking and drug possession allegations.

Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit, which has taken carriage of the investigation, planned to travel to an unknown destination to notify Singh’s family of his death.

At a home in Brampton, listed in court documents as his surety’s address, a landlord said the people who lived there left several months ago but that Peel Regional Police officers had stopped by two weeks ago “looking for these two guys.”

Phone numbers that are listed on court documents and provided by the landlord go straight to voice mail.

This horrific incident could have easily resulted in more than four people killed.

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A split second later or a few inches over and Milica Maljkovic Birkett would likely be dead today. Seconds after the U-Haul truck, travelling the wrong way on the highway narrowly missed her vehicle, it struck the oncoming Nissan killing the three family members and Singh.

“I am so lucky to be alive,” Milica said.

Her vehicle’s dashcam video shows her travelling east on Hwy. 401 near Brock St. when the westbound cargo van suddenly flies by. A Durham Regional Police cruiser is also seen travelling in wrong way in pursuit with its lights blazing.

“Insane,” Milica said. “It was like watching a YouTube video. Or being in a video game.”

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This was real life. And death. It’s just pure luck she was not hit.

At this point, the names of those killed in the crash have not been released – although the Consulate General of India in Toronto has identified the grandfather as Mr. Manivannan, 60, and the grandmother as Mrs. Mahalakshmi, 55.

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Hopefully this changes since people would like to pay their respects to the family and offer assistance to the Ajax parents who lost their three-month-old son.

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Some Durham cops tell The Sun they would like to help the infant’s family but they are not permitted under the new act to contact them.

Under the new Community Safety and Policing Act, DRPS has indicated they can’t comment on any aspect of this case and all of it is now in the hands of the SIU – as per the direction of the new act, which came into effect in April.

Durham Police Chief Peter Moreira politely and respectfully told the Toronto Sun on Friday that under the act he can’t comment and he referred all inquiries to the SIU.

At this point, the SIU focus is on a 32-year-old sergeant and a officer with more than 20 years of service.

SIU investigators will have to sort out all police communications, determine how many cop cars were involved in this chase, why police chose to pursue the suspect vehicle, if or when were the chase was called off, and whether any orders were disobeyed.

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Some in policing circles speculate the pursuing officers’ defence may be that they were trying to alert oncoming motorists, not chase the suspect vehicle.

No police officer has been charged and subject officers have charter rights.

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Police not being able to talk about this incident did not stop Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre from doing so in the House of Commons Wednesday.

In an X post, the Conservative Leader wrote “two wonderful grandparents and a beautiful baby were killed after a criminal – out because of Justin Trudeau’s catch-and-release laws – slammed his car into the innocent family while fleeing a robbery. Common sense Conservatives will stop the crime by bringing jail not bail for repeat violent offenders.”

He’s right. There are questions that need answers. Not only regarding what police did or didn’t do, but also what the justice system did or didn’t do about someone who was before courts on many violent charges but still freed on bail.

Should Singh have been out on bail or behind bars awaiting trial? Perhaps he should have been in a drug treatment facility?

In the name of a baby and his grandparents, there needs to be a meaningful answer because this dangerous high-speed chase allegedly began with a liquor store theft call that involved a knife being pulled on an officer by a someone who was on bail facing charges for other alleged liquor store thefts.

People want to know what happened here – especially a woman named Milica who could have easily been killed.

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