News Release

News Release

SIU Investigates Motor Vehicle Injuries in Petawawa

Case Number: 12-PVI-139   

Mississauga (23 May, 2012) --- Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) is probing the circumstances surrounding a motor vehicle collision that resulted in injuries to a 25-year-old man and a 29-year-old man in Petawawa yesterday.

The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) contacted the SIU and reported the following:
• At approximately 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 22, 2012, OPP officers began following a suspected stolen vehicle in Arnprior;
• At approximately 5:30 p.m., the vehicle being followed, a Toyota Rav 4, collided with an oncoming vehicle in the area of Highway 17 and Paquette Road;
• The 25-year-old driver of the Rav 4 and the driver of the other vehicle were taken to Ottawa Civic Hospital for treatment of serious but non-life threatening injuries.

The SIU has assigned four investigators and two forensic investigators to probe the circumstances of this incident.  At this time, two subject officers and nine witness officers have been designated.

Anyone who may have witnessed this incident is asked to contact the lead investigator at 416-622-9035 or 1-800-787-8529 extension 9035.

The SIU is an independent government agency that investigates the conduct of officials (police officers as well as special constables with the Niagara Parks Commission and peace officers with the Legislative Protective Service) that may have resulted in death, serious injury, sexual assault and/or the discharge of a firearm at a person. All investigations are conducted by SIU investigators who are civilians. Under the Special Investigations Unit Act, the Director of the SIU must

• consider whether the official has committed a criminal offence in connection with the incident under investigation
• depending on the evidence, cause a criminal charge to be laid against the official where grounds exist for doing so, or close the file without any charges being laid
• publicly report the results of its investigations