A 24-year-old man killed in an accident in north Oshawa early Wednesday has been identified as a Durham College student.
Naveen Selvaraj died in the early morning collision at Taunton and Thornton roads, says Tawni Shepperdson of Durham College.
Selvaraj was an international student from India. He completed his project management graduate certificate and was registered for the human resources management graduate certificate in winter, 2019.
Nithin Kumar organized a GoFundMe page in honour of Selvaraj, which has already raised more than $13,000 since news of his death broke.
Kumar says the money will help send Selvaraj’s body back to India and to support his mother.
Harv Bains, who went to school with Selvaraj, wrote on the GoFundMe page: “I lost my friend with whom I spent 10 months studying in [the] same course.”
“He was always helpful, always loved to smile whatever the situation,” he says.
Bains says Selvaraj was on his way home from work before the accident.
Durham Regional Police say a grey Honda Civic was struck from behind by a black Honda Civic around 2 a.m.
Emergency crews arrived on the scene within minutes and provided medical assistance to the male student, police say. He was transported to Lakeridge Health-Oshawa, where he succumbed to his injuries.
Michael La Forty, 36, of Oshawa, was arrested at the scene for impaired driving, police say. The charge has been upgraded to impaired operation causing death, exceeding 80 mgs causing death and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death.
Anyone with new information about the accident or who witnessed it is asked to call Detective Constable Bill Scott of the Traffic Services Branch at 1-888-579-1520 ext. 5217.
