Estate of late Savoura founder sues helicopter company in 2019 deadly Quebec crash
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Monthly Digital Subscription
$1 per week for 24 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $4.00 plus GST every four weeks. After 24 weeks, price increases to the regular rate of $19.00 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
Monthly Digital Subscription
$4.75/week*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $19 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $16.99 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $23.99 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/03/2025 (198 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
MONTREAL – A United States helicopter company is facing a $50-million lawsuit in the 2019 crash that killed the founder of a Quebec greenhouse farming company and his teenage son.
The estate of Stéphane Roy, the late founder and ex-CEO of Savoura, filed a lawsuit on Thursday in Quebec Superior Court accusing Robinson Helicopter Company Inc. of negligence in the two deaths.
Robinson is the manufacturer of the R44 helicopter that crashed in Quebec in July 2019, killing Roy, 55, and his son Justin Roy Séguin, who were returning from a fishing trip. The downed chopper was found in a wooded area near Lac Valtrie, Que., about 220 kilometres northwest of Montreal, 14 days after they were reported missing.
The lawsuit was initially filed in California in July 2021 but Robinson Helicopter sought to have the case moved to Quebec, a step that was affirmed in January 2025 by the California Court of Appeal.
According to the Quebec filing, the estate is seeking $25 million in compensatory damages and another $25 million in punitive damages.
Daniel Roy, brother of Stéphane Roy and executor of the estate, said in a statement Friday that the family is determined to get to the truth. Investigations by the Transportation Safety Board and independent experts have uncovered significant negligence by Robinson Helicopter, he said.
“My family and I are determined to uncover the complete truth behind this tragic event that took my brother and nephew,” Roy said.
“Without accountability, tragedies like this could happen again. We discovered numerous similar incidents involving Robinson aircraft. Our mission is to end these preventable tragedies and hold Robinson accountable.”
A spokesperson for California-based Robinson said it would release a statement later Friday.
The father and son were reported missing on July 11, 2019 — one day after they failed to return home to Ste-Sophie, Que., north of Montreal.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada investigated and issued a report in March 2021 that found the failure of a main rotor blade was a key factor in the crash. The agency said one of the blades had worn out over time due to multiple adhesive failures. While the helicopter was sold with an emergency locator transmitter, no signal was detected after the crash because of a broken locking latch.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 28, 2025.