Ontario police watchdog closes investigation of May collision in Perth

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Ontario’s police watchdog has ended its investigation of a collision that injured a 76-year-old driver in Perth in May.

In a report released Wednesday, the Special Investigations Unit said there were no reasonable grounds that an Ontario Provincial Police officer had committed an offence in connection with the collision.

The injured driver’s vehicle was struck by another vehicle that police had attempted to stop moments earlier on May 14.

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An SIU incident summary said a civilian contacted police to report that he had just been involved in a collision on Highway 7 east of Perth. The civilian described the driver of a a black Volvo that had struck his vehicle and then fled the scene as a 20-year-old Caucasian man with blond hair.

Two OPP officers, in separate cruisers, travelled east on Highway 7 from Perth to intercept the Volvo, which had been reported stolen. They saw the Volvo as it headed west towards Perth. Those officers made U-turns in their vehicles, but discontinued the pursuit.

Another OPP officer was alerted and headed eastbound on Highway 7 from the OPP detachment in Perth. The officer’s vehicle was stopped at the intersection with Drummond Street West when the Volvo passed by at high speed. That officer also made a U-turn, but lost sight of the Volvo and disengaged. While stopped on Highway 7, the officer was approached by a civilian who said the Volvo had turned south on Wilson Street West.

The third OPP officer, the subject of the SIU investigation, drove to Wilson Street South and arrived at the scene of a collision at the intersection with Sunset Boulevard, where the Volvo had struck both a Hyundai Santa Fe and a Toyota Camry.

Again, the stolen Volvo’s driver fled the scene.

The driver of the Santa Fe was transported to hospital and diagnosed with a fractured right wrist and internal bleeding. The driver of the Camry was not seriously injured.

The SIU report did not disclose whether the driver of the stolen Volvo was apprehended by police.

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