Here’s where the most stunt driving charges are being laid by police in Mississauga

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Published April 4, 2023 at 10:21 am

stunt driving mississauga
(Photo: Peel Regional Police)

Hundreds of stunt driving and related charges are being laid by Peel cops at shopping mall parking lots and other spots across Mississauga as efforts continue to clamp down on illegal late-night and overnight racing.

According to City of Mississauga Ward 5 Councillor Carolyn Parrish, who for the past year or so has been pushing Peel Regional Police to take action against the illegal and noisy behaviour at Westwood Square mall in Malton among other areas, police laid numerous charges against offenders across the city in March.

Leading the way was Westwood Square, where Parrish says 154 charges were laid during that time.

Rounding out the top five Mississauga locations in terms of stunt driving and related charges laid in March are Heartland Town Centre (110 charges), Clarkson GO station (56 charges), Sheridan Mall (50 charges) and a stunt driving/racing hot spot in Meadowvale North (26 charges).

Two weekends ago, five cars were taken off the road and numerous stunt driving charges laid in a blitz by Peel cops targeting the ongoing and illegal late-night racing and other activities at Westwood Square.

Police say four of the vehicles seized that weekend during continued late-night/overnight patrols of the empty parking lot at the Malton mall were taken because the drivers were performing illegal stunts such as drifting and doing donuts.

The fifth vehicle was taken from the driver for not having insurance.

Additionally, police say, six stunt driving charges were laid, seven criminal code charges were laid and 24 provincial offence notices were served.

The beefed-up police enforcement of Westwood Square and other areas of Mississauga and Brampton dealing with similar late-night noise and disturbances from the racing of cars has been in place for the past month or so after numerous complaints to police from Parrish, among others.

Parrish has said the problems at Westwood Square, which is in her ward, have been ongoing for more than a year now and that she was worried angry and frustrated residents near the mall would take the law into their own hands and confront the noisy street racers.

She has repeatedly said that Peel police have been doing their best, but were simply not equipped with the resources to pay extra attention to the late-night Malton trouble spot.

However, police have been paying extra attention to the matter in recent weeks and have seized a number of vehicles and laid numerous charges to date.

A late-February police blitz on the illegal stunt drivers and street racers doing their thing led to dozens of charges as cops and local politicians teamed up to try stamp out the worrying and worsening problem.

While recent police crackdowns have targeted the troubling behaviour at Westwood Square, the problem of stunt drivers revving and racing their cars in mall parking lots and industrial areas late at night and overnight is a Mississauga-wide problem, councillors say.

Beyond that, it’s a Peel-wide problem, Region of Peel councillors and police have said.

And with warmer weather on the way in spring and summer, an already big headache for residents, municipal politicians and police is about to potentially get much worse, Mississauga Ward 8 Councillor Matt Mahoney warned earlier.

Parrish said earlier this year she’s worried people may get hurt or “someone’s going to get killed” as frustrated and sleepless residents could take matters into their own hands.

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