Victims killed in 'horrific' Highway 401 crash had run-ins with law
Carla Whyte, 31, and Dwane Koltchigin, 45, faced several charges, police sources and documents confirm
Latest
- A previous version of this story indicated that Dwane Koltchigin's charges were withdrawn
- CBC News has since learned that Koltchigin was convicted on one count of aggravated sexual assault
- CBC News has also learned that Carla Whyte's human trafficking-related charges were stayed
Two people killed in Wednesday's fatal crash on Highway 401 in Scarborough, Ont., had faced a number of charges, police sources and court documents confirm.
Dwane Koltchigin, 45, of Brampton, Ont., who police say was driving the vehicle, faced sex offences five years ago when he reportedly failed to disclose to women that he was HIV positive. He was convicted on one count of aggravated sexual assault and was sentenced to 33 months in jail, according to a clerk at the Ontario Court of Justice.
He was said to go by various names, including Tre and Tre Cold.
His passenger, 31-year-old Carla Whyte of Oshawa, Ont., was charged with several offences in a human trafficking case two years ago where a woman was forced into the sex trade. Her charges included assault with a weapon, kidnapping and armed robbery, and were stayed in March 2016.
CBC Toronto has learned that Whyte had a court appearance scheduled for Jan. 24 related to a series of weapons charges.
Court records also show Koltchigin had a criminal past in Florida. According to Palm Beach County records, he was charged with two counts of dealing in stolen property in 1999. He pleaded guilty in 2000 and was sentenced to 18 months of probation. It's unclear when he left Florida for Canada.
Car nearly torn in 2
Officers found the vehicle on Highway 401 near Warden Avenue just east of the Don Valley Parkway shortly after 4 a.m. ET on Wednesday.
The car was almost torn in two from the impact of the crash in Scarborough.
At the time, OPP Const. Prash Niranjan said the driver lost control "for some unknown reason." Police had said they were going to look at road and weather conditions and possibly speed as factors.
Because the vehicle is a newer-model passenger SUV, police had said investigators would likely be able to recover information from its onboard computer system that may provide valuable information about what went wrong.
Preliminary indications suggested the driver slammed into the centre median, sending the car airborne into the steel girder.
"It's pretty remarkable," Niranjan had told CBC Toronto from the scene. "It's a horrific collision."
The OPP says the investigation into the crash is ongoing.
