Truck driver in Humboldt Broncos bus crash ordered to be deported

More than six years after the horrific Humboldt Broncos bus crash, the man driving the semi-truck has been ordered to be deported.

An Immigration and Refugee Board hearing was held virtually in Calgary for Jaskirat Singh Sidhu on Friday morning, where the decision was handed out.

The decision was a forgone conclusion, according to Sidhu’s lawyer Michael Greene, who has said all that’s required to deport his client is proof that he is not a Canadian citizen and he committed a serious crime.

Sidhu is from India and has permanent resident status in Canada.

Scott Thomas is the father of Evan Thomas, a Humboldt Broncos forward who was killed in the 2018 bus crash. He said Friday morning he is not surprised by the decision.

“Our family has always said right from the beginning that we didn’t think that deportation was a necessary ending to this,” Thomas said.

“I think it’s unnecessary and piling on at this point, if you will. I feel bad for Mr. Sidhu because, like I said, I don’t think this is a necessary step for him and a necessary conclusion to all of this.”

Thomas went on to say that Sidhu has done his time.

“I thought the penalty that judge (Inez) Cardinal imposed on him in Melfort was more than a fair penalty considering the laws that exist in Canada,” Thomas said.

“I think just because of the extraordinary circumstances and the size and scope of the tragedy, if you will, unfortunately put him in a position where he’s subject to this deportation law.”

Sidhu was sentenced to eight years behind bars for dangerous driving offences in the Humboldt Broncos bus crash in Saskatchewan that left 16 people dead and 13 others injured.

Sidhu was granted full parole last year.

There are other legal procedures to come, according to Greene. The