Even before the muscle-car action flick The Fast and The Furious zoomed into theatres earlier this summer, Canada's most populous city was known as a hotbed for illegal street racing. Now, at least one Toronto police officer is wondering if the movie - which stars Vin Diesel as a tough-guy Los Angeles racing king - has caused copycat behaviour leading to accidents like a recent high-speed crash that left two dead and sent five to hospital. "When a movie like this comes out and it glorifies fast driving and (shows) people (getting) away with it, then I believe that yeah, some people would go out and imitate that type of lifestyle or behaviour," Sgt. Ted Holtzheuser said. Toronto earned its reputation as a mecca for illegal hot rodders after last year's release of the A&E documentary Street Racing: The Need for Speed, about the city's underground racing scene. Police say the races usually occur in the wee hours of the morning and often attract up to 300 people. Estimates suggest there are several major street races in the city every summer, sometimes attracting hundreds of spectators. The latest fatalities to be linked to street racing occurred Sunday evening when a car travelling about 120 kilometres an hour hit a van, an airport limousine and a car. The limo smashed into a second van, causing the van to roll over. Two occupants of the car died in the crash. A second car was seen racing alongside the first speeding vehicle, a witness reported. However, police said that report has not been confirmed. Holtzheuser said it's impossible to say if The Fast and the Furious has directly caused any drag racing-related accidents this summer, but pointed out that the movie's release comes at a time of year when the races are especially popular. "This is racing season and there are events happening all the time," he said. "If somebody (is) . . . seeking a thrill and they see this movie, they may be encouraged to act out that type of scenario on their own to see how much fun it is." The controversy surrounding the The Fast and the Furious is by no means the first time the entertainment industry has been accused of inciting copycat behaviour. Earlier this year, police suggested that the MTV program Jackass inspired a group of teens to try to jump over a moving car. The creators of The Fast and the Furious are taking no chances, and the film's Web site makes it clear the stunts in the film were done by professionals and should not by tried by anyone else. Those stunts are clearly one of the main draws of the film, which has received middling reviews, but has been praised for its nailbiting racing sequences. Despite the fuss about the film's possible influence, York Region police Const. Robert O'Quinn doesn't believe there's a connection between this movie and Toronto's street racing scene. Street racing has been associated with teens and summer since James Dean's 1955 film Rebel Without A Cause, he said, adding that the main reason street racing has become more popular is because of improved technology. "You've got these guys who are able to put a computer chip in a little Honda and make it faster than it was meant to be," he said. "As long as there's been teenagers, there's been racing."