LONGUEUIL, QUEBEC — An Canadian truck driver has pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing death after admitting he was playing an online cellphone game when he failed to slow down for a construction zone on Highway 30 near Montreal, triggering a seven-vehicle pileup that killed a mother and her 11-year-old son and injured 10 others.
Baljeet Singh, 29, appeared at the Longueuil courthouse Wednesday via videoconference from a detention centre. He pleaded guilty to two counts of dangerous driving causing death and three counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm. Sentencing is scheduled for June 4.
The Crash
On the night of July 19, 2022, Singh was driving a 53-foot tractor-trailer on Highway 30 in Brossard when traffic slowed approaching a construction zone near Grande-Allée Boulevard. Singh failed to slow down in time and slammed into several vehicles. Seven vehicles were struck in the pileup.
An agreed statement of facts revealed Singh had used his cellphone 18 times in the hour before the crash. At the time of impact, he was playing Ludo — a strategy-based online board game — on his phone. His eyes were not on the road.
Multiple warning signs were visible along the road before the crash — brake lights, yellow flashing lights, traffic cones, and vehicles ahead rapidly slowing. A collision reconstructionist determined Singh only reacted 0.35 seconds before impact. The crash could have been avoided had he changed lanes in time.
“The driver should have been alerted by these signs and remained more vigilant so as to be ready to react. The video clearly shows the driver’s lack of reaction until the very end,” the agreed statement of facts stated.
The Victims
Nancy Lefrançois, 42, was driving a Dodge Challenger with her 11-year-old son Loïc Chevalier and two other passengers. Both mother and son had just celebrated their birthdays in the days before the crash. Lefrançois was pronounced dead at the scene. Loïc was pronounced dead in hospital.
Her husband, Benoit Lavoie, suffered a collapsed lung, fractured ribs, a concussion, head trauma, and scalp lacerations. He was in a coma for three weeks — causing him to miss his wife’s funeral. A 16-year-old passenger suffered internal bleeding, a broken nose, spinal injuries, and several lacerations. He was intubated for two days and required plastic surgery on his head and face. Several others sustained serious injuries.
A Pattern of Dangerous Driving
Dashcam footage from Singh’s truck showed more than 40 traffic violations during his last three trips, including repeated cellphone use while driving, weaving between lanes, and failure to take mandatory rest periods — resulting in exceeded driving hours. Call logs showed he was on the phone with another man in the hour before the crash and frequently played online games with him.
Singh Fled to India
After being treated for shock and discharged from hospital at 4:45 a.m. on July 20, Singh voluntarily met with investigators and claimed he had no memory of the crash. That same afternoon, he bought a plane ticket at 3:37 p.m. and flew to India. He deleted his social media accounts. Police could not reach him. A Canada-wide arrest warrant was issued on July 13, 2023.
Authorities said Singh fled to Toronto before leaving for India and later California. U.S. federal agents arrested him in California on August 21, 2025. He did not contest extradition. The following month, he was arrested by the Sûreté du Québec and returned to Canada, where he admitted he was playing Ludo when the crash happened and that his eyes were off the road. He has been in custody since September 11, 2025.
Singh has expressed remorse. “He expresses his regret to the victims, their loved ones, and his family,” the agreed statement of facts stated. He has admitted the pileup was his fault and said he wants to be held accountable.
Dangerous driving causing death carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment in Canada.
All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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