A Vaughan, Ontario man, who left his 16-year-old girlfriend lying in traffic lanes on a cold winter night in January 2020 and drove away after she fell from her moving car, was sentenced to eight months in jail. , 18 months of probation and two years of driving ban.
Adhinath Sankar, 22, was brought in handcuffs from a Brampton court after Ontario Court Judge Paul Mohanan handed down his sentence on Friday.
On September 1, 2021, Sankar pleaded guilty to failing to remain at the scene of the accident following an extensive investigation by Peel Police into the circumstances of the death of 16-year-old Dianna Manan.
According to an agreed statement of fact, on the night of January 4, 2020, Sankar and Manan attended a baby shower for a friend at Princess Valley Crescent in Brampton after spending the day together.
They left the party around midnight. Video surveillance showed that as they were driving away from the party, Manan stopped and lay down on the sidewalk. Sankar and his friends could be seen picking her up off the ground and into their 2008 Infiniti.
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At 12:17 a.m. on January 5, 2020, as Sankar was driving east on Queen Street near Cherrycrest Drive, with Manan in the passenger seat. Manan somehow fell out of the car while in motion.
Sankar continued east on Queen Street and left the scene. There were six lanes of live traffic and the outside temperature was 0 C. The posted speed limit was 80 km / h.
Several passing motorists stopped at the scene and saw the teenager lying motionless and bleeding from the head.
Emergency services were called and when paramedics arrived, they found the teenager with a pulse and breathing. Manan was taken to the hospital where she succumbed to her injuries.
At the time of the incident, Peel police asked for witnesses to believe that Manan had been the victim of a hit-and-run. Investigators later realized that there was no evidence of a collision.
An autopsy found that Manan died of a head injury. He had multiple blunt injuries to his face, head, right torso, and extremities. The doctor concluded that his injuries were caused by interaction with the road surface. His blood alcohol level was 126 mg / 100 ml of blood.
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After the incident, Sankar’s vehicle was seen on surveillance video driving through the area.
Dashcam video obtained from another motorist showed the Infiniti driving past the accident scene and parking in a plaza east of where Manan had fallen from the car. The vehicle remained there for a period of time.
Sankar then returned to the baby shower location in Princess Valley Crescent and was seen inspecting his vehicle.
Judge Mohanan called the circumstances of Sankar’s actions shocking.
“Mr. Sankar had an obligation to help Ms. Manan and he didn’t do it completely,” Mohanan said. “It’s bad enough not helping a stranger, but not helping Ms. Manan is even worse. Also, she was a passenger in his vehicle and was his girlfriend ”.
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Monahan noted that Sankar knew she must be engaged due to the alcohol in her body.
“About 17 minutes earlier, I was picking her up from the sidewalk after the baby shower. It’s even more aggravating and shocking that he left her in a busy lane of traffic. Six lanes. The fact that she wasn’t hit by another vehicle was pure luck, ”Monahan said.
“When she fell out of a moving car on a six-lane highway, he leaves her and doesn’t stop. He didn’t know if she was dead or alive. It just so happens that she was alive. We now know that she would not have survived the fall of the vehicle no matter what. He left her for others to help her when he had an obligation to help her, ”Monahan told the court, saying that Manan was only 16 years old and had her whole life ahead of her.
The Crown had asked for a sentence of 15 to 18 months in jail, while the defense suggested that a three-month sentence would be more appropriate.
Mohanan called it “a very serious case of lack of permanence” and said he hoped it would send a message of denunciation and deterrence.
Sankar was also ordered to perform 75 hours of community service and present his DNA.
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