York Regional Police are looking for a witness on a bike who may have seen a collision believed to have killed a student trustee.
Police said the collision occurred June 11 in Whitchurch-Stouffville at approximately 8:45 a.m., with a dump truck colliding with a Toyota Corolla with two occupants in the area of Warden Avenue and Stouffville Road. Both of the women in the Toyota were pronounced deceased on the scene, while the transport truck driver was taken to hospital with minor injuries.
The investigation has yielded video surveillance, which police said shows a cyclist travelling south on Warden Avenue.
The cyclist "then stopped on the northwest corner of Stouffville and Warden and was likely a witness to the entire sequence of events,” police said. “We are asking this person to please come forward.”
One of the deceased is reportedly York Region District School Board student trustee Munira Chakera, with a GoFundMe connected to her raising money after the crash. Chakera has been widely identified as one of the victims but authorities have not formally confirmed that.
Chakera’s death has led to an outpouring of grief in her school board community. The board said it had deployed a support team to her school to support the students there.
Police said it is seeking any other witnesses who have not yet spoken. Officers are also seeking anyone who may have dashcam footage or who may have seen the driving patterns of either vehicle before the collision.
Anyone with information can contact the major collision investigation unit by calling 1-866-876-5423, ext. 7704, or to call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS, or leave an anonymous tip online at www.1800222tips.com.
