Lawsuit launched against Durham police officers, board, and driver following wrong-way crash that left infant, grandparents dead

A wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby on April 29, 2024, left four people, including an infant, dead, the province's Special Investigations Unit says.

A lawsuit has been launched against two Durham Regional Police officers and the police board in connection with a deadly wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 last year that claimed the lives of an infant and his grandparents.

Three-month-old Aditya Vivaan Golkunath and his grandparents, 60-year-old Manivannan Srinivasapillai and 55-year-old Mahalakshmi Ananthakrishnan, were killed after 21-year-old Gagandeep Singh struck their vehicle head-on travelling the wrong way on the highway in Whitby, Ont., on April 29, 2024.

Singh, who was also killed in the crash, was driving a rented U-Haul van at the time and was being pursued by Durham Regional Police when the crash occurred.

The infant’s parents, Gokulnath Manivannan and Ashwitha Jawahar, were in the vehicle at the time of the crash and survived. They are two of the plaintiffs who are suing the police board, Singh’s estate, as well as Sgt. Richard Flynn and Const. Brandon Hamilton, who were also charged by the Special Investigations Unit earlier this year with criminal negligence causing death. The criminal charges against the two officers have not been tested in court.

The lawsuit alleges that Flynn and Hamilton “exercised negligent and reckless judgment” when they decided to pursue Singh’s vehicle in the wrong direction on the highway that day.

It also alleges that the police board “failed to provide adequate, or any, training to officers” in relation to “suspect apprehension pursuits.”

Durham Regional Police spokesperson Sgt. Joanne McCabe said the service is aware of the lawsuit but cannot comment as it is “part of an ongoing investigation and legal process.”

“This is an unimaginable loss for our clients, and their primary focus right now is on grieving and supporting one another through this devastating time,” Brad Moscato, one of the two lawyers from Howie, Sacks & Henry LLP that are representing the family, wrote in an email to CP24.com.

“We are working to ensure that a thorough investigation is conducted so that the family can get the answers they deserve about how this terrible incident occurred.”

The police pursuit was launched following a robbery at an LCBO in Bowmanville where the suspect allegedly brandished a knife when confronted by an off-duty officer inside the store.

On-duty officers subsequently pursued the suspect vehicle, lost sight of it, and later located the vehicle in Oshawa.

Officers re-engaged the pursuit after the suspect allegedly struck a cruiser and entered the eastbound lanes of the 401, travelling in the wrong direction.

Lawyers representing the two officers in the criminal case previously told CTV News Toronto that the charges are “wrong.”

“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 lawyers said in a joint statement sent to CTV earlier this year.

The statement of claim states that the plaintiffs, which include the child’s parents and extended family, have suffered “horrific pain and suffering” and a “loss of enjoyment of life.”

“As a result of this accident and the deaths of Aditya, Srinivasapillai and Mahalakshmi, the Plaintiffs have sustained and will continue to sustain serious and ongoing psychological injuries, mental and emotional stress, and medical and other out of-pocket expenses.”

With files from CP24’s Joshua Freeman and Bryann Aguilar