The incident happened while the man was trying to get help for his friend, who was experiencing a “possible overdose,” say Durham police
Chris So, The Toronto Star
Investigators say the driver was trying to get help for his unresponsive friend when he ran over the 29-year-old. Police believe both had been using narcotics.
“So sad, and so completely avoidable,” said Sgt. Bill Calder of the Durham Regional Police Service.
The incident happened at around 4:40 p.m. on Symons Rd., south of Baseline Rd. in Bowmanville.
Police allege the pair were consuming narcotics in the truck on the side of the road when the passenger began to go into medical distress.
“It was going to be related probably to the narcotics,” Calder said.
“You could call it a possible overdose.”
The driver pulled his friend out of the truck and onto the ground, attempting CPR. Then, Calder said the man drove to a nearby business on Baseline Rd. to call for help.
“He didn’t have a cell phone,” Calder said.
The driver rushed back to the scene out of “panic and concern for his friend,” but accidentally ran him over, Calder said.
The 29-year-old from Clarington later died from his injuries in hospital. Durham police are not releasing his name at the request of his family.
The drugs the pair were allegedly using haven’t yet been identified.
“We didn’t recover any of the narcotics at the scene,” Calder said.
“But we suspect what it is.”
Zachary Pepper, 21, of Bowmanville, was charged with impaired driving causing death. He’s since been released on bail.
The road was closed for several hours after the accident while Durham police investigated.
Toronto Star
Source: insideHALTON.com