Driver that killed father and daughter in 2017 crash northwest of Saskatoon sentenced to 6 years

Braydon Wolfe says he has no memory of the crash. Sangin Niazisays she cannot forget it.

Wolfe drove his half-ton truck into the front of a sedan carrying Niazi, her husband Mohammad and their daughter Zohal on Aug. 21, 2017. The father and daughter died at the scene, while Sangin survived.

At Wolfe's trial last year, Sangin described herself as lost, shattered, confused and "drowning in my own grief."

On Thursday, Justice Richard Danyliuk sentenced Wolfe, 31, to six years in prison. Wolfe had been convicted in December2020of two counts of criminal negligence causing death and one count of criminal negligence causing bodily harm at Court of Queen's Bench in Saskatoon.

"The collision and carnage were terrible, and were reflected both in photographs put in as trial exhibits and in the descriptions given by witnesses," Danyliuk wrote in his 39-page judgment.

"Sangin Niazi's testimony was calm, measured, detailed, and ultimately heartbreaking."

Devastation

Victim impact statements read in court showed how the crash devastated the family.

A family friend describedvisiting thehospital after thecrash andinjured mother Sangintelling her, "My baby is gone."

An older daughter, Mina,said that on that day, "The world came to an end for our family." She said it has caused "endless pain," anxiety, insomnia and fear of driving for several of them.

Another sister, Zoey, said it's still difficult to "eat, sleep or think straight." She said she's grateful her mom survived.

"Without her, I would not be here today."

Court heard howMohammadfled Afghanistan after he was jailed by the Taliban. He arrived in Saskatoon via Moscow. He had been a senior governmenteconomic official in the Afghan government, but took jobs in Saskatoon as a janitor and later a book sorter at the library as he learned English.

"He loved Canada, the freedom it represented, and the opportunity it held for his daughters. He was a dedicated husband, a proud father, a good man," Danyliuk wrote.

• Driver in fatal 2017 highway crash northwest of Saskatoon guilty of criminal negligence causing death

• RCMP testimony at trial describes chaotic scene at crash near Langham that killed father, daughter

RCMP who were at the crash scene said they discovered beer cans in the ditch but never linked the alcohol to Wolfe. He was not charged with impaired driving. Wolfe indicated he had no recollection of how he came to be travelling into oncoming traffic on the wrong side of a divided highway.

Danyliuk wrote that, based on what he heard at trial, he concluded that Wolfe had drank an unknown amount of alcohol before the crash.

This, and Wolfe's driving record, concerned Danyliuk.

"Within a four-year period (2013 to 2017) he had three at-fault accidents before causing this collision," he said.

"One of those accidents was less than a month before this collision in August 2017."

That said, Danyliuk also accepted that Wolfe is genuinely remorseful about what happened and accepts responsibility for his actions.