Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) has laid 48 charges following a three-month investigation into dangerous motorcycle stunts and erratic riding behaviours in the Greater Toronto area.
Police say that dozens of riders on sports bikes have been coordinating stunt that “purposefully snarled traffic and put the lives of participants and the safety of other road users and pedestrians in jeopardy.”
The Ontario Provincial Police provided the following footage of stunt driving incidents on major highways.
On twenty occasions, police intervened in dangerous riding activity on busy, major highways, including the Gardiner Expressway and the Don Valley Parkway.
“The danger these riders presented to themselves and to the unsuspecting drivers they distracted, cut off, or totally stopped in live lanes is beyond belief,” said Superintendent Alison Jevons of the OPP Highway Safety Division. “These stunts that self-servingly fuel their egos needed to be stopped before anyone was killed or maimed.”
The incidents were captured on video by participants and posted publicly to various social media channels.
The public response to a request for information is credited with identifying some participants at an August 6th, 2017 incident.
At a news conference today, the OPP shared details of the investigation, and displayed video evidence, and showed some of the vehicles seized during search warrants executed earlier this week.
According to police, the same sub-culture of riders has been known to refuse to stop and have swarmed police officers in a threatening manner on several occasions.
Seven of the ten primary accused have made their first appearance in court while three others have outstanding warrants for their arrest.
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