Alberta trucker charged with criminal negligence in highway crash that killed 2 motorcyclists

A man from Slave Lake, Alta., is in custody and faces more than a dozen driving and criminal negligence charges, in connection to a vehicle collision last August that killed two motorcyclists and injuring several others.

Michael Koochin, 38, was scheduled to appear Thursday in the Court of Justice in Wabasca-Desmarais, a hamlet about 270 kilometres north of Edmonton, RCMP said in a news release Thursday.

Koochin is accused of two counts each of criminal negligence causing death and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death; six counts each of criminal negligence causing bodily harm and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing bodily harm; one count of possession of methamphetamine and nine other driving infractions, including driving a vehicle without insurance.

"It has been a long few months. With the arrest, this gives us, finally, some peace and [to] start our healing process, because without it, we just weren't able to," said Tiannah Mansell, whose brother Tyler Duboski, a 33-year-old from Edmonton, was one of the riders killed in the crash.

She added  that the drug charge "makes me a bit sick to my stomach."

On Aug. 31, a semi-truck crossed the centre line on Highway 2 and ran into a convoy of motorcycles on a charity ride near Faust, a hamlet about 300 kilometres northwest of Edmonton, according to police.

Two motorcyclists died: Duboski and 38-year-old Laurent Isadore from Driftpile First Nation. At least four other riders were injured and sent to hospital.

Isadore had organized the charity ride to help people experiencing homelessness on Treaty 8 territory, which stretches from northeastern B.C., through northern Alberta, northwestern Saskatchewan and a southern portion of the Northwest Territories.

Koochin was arrested Jan. 8, more than four months after the crash.

"This is one step in the right direction, but this is only, so far, one step," said Brenda Powder, Isadore's fiancée. "There's still a whole journey ahead of use, and this journey is a very unpredictable one."

The news raises mixed emotions for everyone affected by the tragedy: happiness that the arrest was made, but also grief, as it reminds them of those who died and memories of the crash, she said.

The arrest came less than a week after friends and relatives of the men killed demonstrated outside Alberta RCMP headquarters in Edmonton, calling for accountability.

At the time, an RCMP spokesperson told CBC News charges were pending, noting that time frames differ for every investigation.

Mansell, ultimately, is glad police took the time they needed to do a thorough investigation, she said.

"Nothing will bring them back, so hopefully justice is just served properly," she said.

Powder urged people to be safe when getting behind the wheel, and called for greater safety precautions and transparency for truckers.

"There is a lot of us out here sharing the road and we all want to make it back home alive to our loved one," she said.