'He was my best friend': Parents of teens killed in western Manitoba feeling the pain of fatal collision

Dan Swintak didn’t just lose his only child in a tragic car crash in western Manitoba this week — he lost his best friend.

“He was downright a good kid, and I was very proud of him. I loved him very, very much,” Swintak said, his voice breaking, during a telephone interview on Friday.

“He was my best friend. He was my mini me. He was 18 years old, but he still was able to give his old man a hug.”

Chris Swintak was among four teens killed on Wednesday night, a few weeks after his 18th birthday, when his vehicle failed to stop at