Key facts
- A house rammed by a car in Middlesbrough belonged to the father of Cole Worthy, a teenager who died in a subsequent A66 crash.
- Cole Worthy was one of five young men killed when their Volkswagen Passat collided with a Cleveland Police armed response vehicle.
- Two police officers, PC Tom Clough and PC Matthew Blades, also died in the crash.
- The pursuit of the Passat was abandoned seconds before the collision.
- Multiple arrests have been made in connection with the incident and related alleged criminal activity.
A house in Middlesbrough was rammed by a car in the early hours of Saturday, shortly before a fatal crash on the A66 involving a Volkswagen Passat and a Cleveland Police armed response vehicle. The house belonged to the father of Cole Worthy, a 17-year-old who was one of five young men killed in the Passat. The collision also claimed the lives of two police officers, PC Tom Clough, 38, and PC Matthew Blades, 37.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct stated that officers had pursued the Passat for nearly seven minutes after connecting it to earlier alleged criminal activity. However, the pursuit was abandoned just 10 seconds before the crash when the Passat turned onto the dual carriageway.
Both vehicles involved in the crash were reportedly operating with cloned number plates but were identified by automated number plate recognition technology. Neighbours reported hearing loud bangs around 2 a.m. on Saturday, and the street was subsequently filled with police presence throughout the weekend.
In connection with the incident and related alleged criminal activity, multiple arrests have been made. Initially, nine men and three women, aged between 19 and 61, were arrested on suspicion of offences including possession of a firearm and involvement in an organised crime group. Subsequently, five more individuals, including a 16-year-old boy and two men aged 18 and 21, were arrested on suspicion of participating in an organised crime group. A 55-year-old man was arrested for assisting an offender, and a 23-year-old man for making threats to kill. Two men have been charged with firearms and drug offences.