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3 | O akville B eaver | T hursday,F ebruary 18,2021 insidehalton.com $79 Over 120,000 satisfied custOmers 9 Locations to serve you better Heating & Cooling www.aireonewest.ca high efficiency central air & furnace *Call for Details *Call for Details FURNACE DIAGNOSTIC SPECIAL *Call for Details $49$49 * Starting from Starting from $2799$2799 * 10 Year Factory Warranty 10 Year Factory Warranty $1/DAY OAC* AIRE ONE MADNEss sAlE!AIRE ONE MADNEss sAlE! FURNACE CLEANING SPECIAL 95.5%EFF. 95.5%EFF. $59 /MONTH OAC* NO PAYMENT, NO INTEREST!* $4999 *$4999 *Call for Details 79$79$79 * OAKVILLE 905-849-4998 1-888-827-2665 $1000 Off hi-efficiency furnace 10 Y Ying Yang Chartered Professional Accountant Member of Canadian Tax Foundation (647) 989-1276 Oakville Office: (289) 291-3924 Toronto Offiffice: (647) 255-8049 yy@yangaccounting.ca For an affordable solution to your Business and Individual tax difficulties … Make an Appointment Today for a Free Confidential Consultation CRACRACRACRA PPPPrroblobleems?ms? Individual, Corporati &on & Trust Payrayroll, HST includiudingng Overseas & O& Offffshorshore Tax Issueax Issues Yang Tang Tang Tang ax Resolsolution A Mississauga truck driver responsible for a fi- ery 2019 crash in Oakville that left a woman dead and seven people injured has been convicted of danger- ous driving causing death. Muhammad Hasnai Ra- za was found guilty in a Burlington court on Thursday, Feb. 11. He will return to Bur- lington on April 8 for sen- tencing. The Mississauga man was charged in the wake of a horrific crash on the east- bound QEW near Trafal- gar Road on Aug. 22, 2019. The crash involved eight vehicles and left Ele- na Kulikova, 34, a well- known artist in Niagara Falls, dead. In reaching his verdict, Justice Scott Latimer said Raza displayed "sustained inattention" in the mo- ments immediately leading up to the crash. Raza had been driving a transport truck loaded with peaches in the east- bound lanes of the QEW. At around 10:45 p.m., he approached the Trafalgar Road overpass where a number of vehicles were stopped as a result of con- struction ahead. The court heard that Ra- za's truck slammed into seven of these stationary vehicles, resulting in an ex- plosion. Latimer said an investi- gation found that Raza was not speeding and there is no evidence to indicate Ra- za was fatigued. The investigation also found that the area was well illuminated. Two drivers, who were among the stopped vehi- cles, testified during the two-day trial that road con- ditions that night were dry, that the brake lights of all the stopped vehicles were clearly visible and that they had no issues slowing down or stopping when they saw the traffic conges- tion. One witness testified his car caught fire after being struck during the incident. Despite suffering a spi- nal fracture, this man was able to get out of his car and make his way to safety. Ultimately, Latimer concluded Raza had a clear line of sight and pointed to footage from Ministry of Transportation cameras that showed a number of vehicles of the same size slowing and stopping for the traffic congestion with- out issue. "Mr. Raza had the op- portunity and should have seen what was occurring with the traffic immediate- ly in front of him," said Lat- imer. "Mr. Raza's failure to pay attention to the change in traffic, in that vehicle, at that speed mounted to dan- gerous driving. I am satis- fied beyond a reasonable doubt that the Crown has proven the charge." The verdict was well re- ceived by members of Kuli- kova's family, who attend- ed the proceedings. Kristina Kulikova, Ele- na's sister, said that while no verdict can undo the damage that has been done, knowing that some- one is being held responsi- ble for the collision helps. "I'm so grateful that someone was put at fault because it would have been absolutely inexplainable how a driver who causes an eight-vehicle collision could be found not guilty," she said. "That would have never settled in my mind." Kristina said she wor- ried that had Raza been found not guilty it would have set a precedent for drivers that inattentive- ness is OK on the road. She described her sister Elena as a talented artist, musician, singer and pia- nist as well as a brilliant business woman, a loving daughter and true friend. Her parents, Sergey and Tatyana, said it has been incredibly difficult for them to come to terms with the fact that because of one person's irresponsible ac- tions, their daughter lost her life much too soon. The family says they will attend Raza's sentenc- ing hearing. Dangerous driving caus- ing death is punishable by up to 14 years in prison. MAN CONVICTED OF CAUSING FIERY 2019 CRASH Elena Kulikova was killed in a 2019 crash in Oakville. Kulikova family photo DAVID LEA dlea@metroland.com CRIME