A 43-year-old man died in an early-morning taxicab crash in Winnipeg.

The man was the passenger in the Duffy's Taxi that slammed into a tree on Beverley Street near the corner with Portage Avenue just before 4 a.m. CT on Thursday

The 31-year-old cab driver was taken to hospital in critical condition. A Winnipeg Regional Health Authority spokesperson told CBC News late Thursday afternoon that the man was last reported to be in critical but stable condition.

Const. Jason Michalyshen said investigators are still confirming details, but there might have been a dispute going on in the cab at the time.

"Some sort of a confrontation may have been occurring within the cab prior to the collision, and as a result, that may have been a contributing factor in the collision," Michalyshen told reporters.

Surveillance video from a camera mounted inside the the cab is being reviewed, police said, adding that the passenger was known to them but they wouldn't elaborate.

The passenger had a 13-page criminal record that includes past convictions for robbery, weapons offences and numerous breaches of court orders, CBC News has learned.

Meanwhile, Duffy's Taxi is in the process of organizing a fundraiser or other event in support of the injured driver's family, according to the company official.

At least one staff member told CBC News earlier in the day that the injured driver has been with the company for two years. He was described as an all-around nice guy.

Anyone who may have witnessed the incident or events leading up to the collision is asked to contact investigators at (204) 986-6271.