Canada-wide arrest warrant issued following N.L. truck crash that left site looking like a ‘war zone’

More than a year after a transport truck went over an embankment in Newfoundland’s Burin Peninsula, the Crown says the company’s president is in India and out of reach.

On Feb. 4, 2025, a truck owned by Ontario-based Ollie Transport went over an embankment near a Swift Current residence, spilling hundreds of litres of diesel and leaving behind parts of the wreckage.

The provincial government said the company failed to follow a ministerial order to clean up and remediate the site and is pursuing the company and president Harinder Singh in court.

According to court documents obtained by CBC News, earlier this year a Canada-wide arrest warrant was issued for Singh because “there are reasonable grounds to believe that it is necessary in the public interest to issue this warrant for the arrest of the accused.”

In a Clarenville court room this past November, Crown attorney Cory Binderup said, “Mr. Singh’s not in the country, right. He’s in India and Mr. Singh is likely never to come back to Canada.”

Binderup has also said Singh was the driver of the truck when it crashed.

Last month, Binderup told the court that because he’s having trouble serving Singh, he would apply for substitute service, an alternative method for delivering legal documents when the standard personal service is either impractical or is being evaded.

In a statement on behalf of the provincial government, spokesperson Gina Macarthur said the new PC government “takes the protection of the environment very seriously, and we understand the frustration of those affected by this situation.”

The statement added since the company didn’t comply with a ministerial order to clean up and remediate the site, the province decided to pursue legal action and that is still before the courts.

The matter is due back in court on April 2.

The email for Ollie Transport is no longer functional and phone calls went unanswered. Emails sent through its website were also not responded to.

‘Like a war zone’

Swift Current resident Nancy Barrington owns a home near the embankment where the truck crashed and said it left behind a mess as well as the spilled oil, which she can still smell more than a year later.

She said the experience has put her through mental anguish.

“I’m always out there and wondering, OK, is this going to happen again? Is this going to happen to somebody else?,” Barrington recently told CBC News.

“It’s always in the back of your mind, I guess. And it’s a sad thing that people have to go through this.”

While debris like glass has been picked up, she said larger debris is still around, including truck tires, the cab and bonnet of the truck. The crash also took out a lot of mature trees, “So all of that’s gone and it looks like a war zone.”

The diesel that was spilled from the crash has soaked into the ground and turned the grass a brown colour, added Barrington. During the summer’s wildfire season she was worried that her property was more susceptible to fire.

Barrington said in January she spoke with officers from Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) about the damage.

Barrington wants to see stricter penalties for polluters and faster site remediation, along with more inspections for trucks travelling through the province. 

“I want the area cleaned up and reinstated to something similar that was back there.”

In a statement to CBC News, ECCC said it is aware of the incident and is working with the province to respond. A file has been opened on the matter to ensure compliance with the Fisheries Act.

“If enforcement officers find evidence of a possible violation of the Fisheries Act, they will take appropriate action in accordance with the Compliance and Enforcement Policy,” the statement reads.

“As this is an ongoing enforcement file, Environment and Climate Change Canada does not have any further information to provide at this time.”

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