Twelve people have been arrested across Teesside as part of the A66 crash organised crime arrests investigation, after a wrong-way collision near Middlesbrough killed two police officers and five car occupants in the early hours of Saturday.
Nine men and three women, aged between 19 and 61, were detained on suspicion of offences including possession of a firearm and participating in an organised crime group. One person has been charged, several remain in custody and others have been released on bail.
What Cleveland Police say led to the A66 crash
Cleveland Police said it had received several reports of two vehicles ‘being driven dangerously’ on Saturday morning. The first vehicle, believed to be a Volvo XC60, was seen ‘ramming properties’ in the Middlesbrough area. The second, a Volkswagen Passat, is believed to have been associated with that activity.
Both vehicles were operating with cloned number plates but were picked up by automated number plate recognition technology. The Volvo has since been recovered in Middlesbrough. Four of the five people in the Passat had previous convictions.
The Passat travelled the wrong way down the A66 at South Bank after being pursued by police. Officers abandoned the pursuit when the car went the wrong way. Ten seconds later, at 03:39 BST, the Passat collided with the vehicle carrying PC Tom Clough, 38, and PC Matthew Blades, 37, who were travelling on the correct side of the road and were in the area to assist with the search for the car. Both officers died, as did all five occupants of the Passat: Michael Robert Cahill, 23, Jacob Matusiak, 23, Makai Saddington, 18, Theo Rae, 17, and Cole Robert Worthy, 17.
Assistant Chief Constable Wayne Fox said the investigation had been ‘fast moving and complex’. He said: ‘The events of that tragic night will have a lasting and profound impact on the Cleveland area and the communities we seek to protect. We have a duty to respond to, and thoroughly investigate, the serious criminal activity that resulted in this fatal incident and to bring all those responsible to justice.’
A66 crash organised crime arrests: full breakdown of those detained
Three men, aged 24, 19 and 35, are in police custody on suspicion of participating in an organised crime group and possession of an offensive weapon. A 21-year-old man, held on the same organised crime group and offensive weapon suspicions as well as criminal damage, has been remanded on recall to prison.
A 30-year-old woman arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender and a 20-year-old man arrested on suspicion of threats to cause criminal damage and public order both remain in custody. A 26-year-old man has been charged with possession with intent to supply class A and class B drugs, as well as possession of criminal property.
Two others, a 39-year-old man and a 47-year-old woman, have been released on conditional bail after being arrested on suspicion of possessing a firearm without a certificate, possession with intent to supply class A and class B drugs, and possession of class C drugs. An 18-year-old man has been released on unconditional bail after being arrested on suspicion of the same firearms and drugs offences. A 61-year-old woman has been released on conditional bail after being arrested on suspicion of possessing a firearm without a certificate. A 39-year-old man arrested on suspicion of threats to kill has also been released on conditional bail.
IOPC launches independent investigation into the pursuit
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has opened an independent investigation following a mandatory self-referral from Cleveland Police, which is required whenever someone dies following contact with police. The IOPC said it declared its independent investigation at 6.03am, following that mandatory referral from the force. The IOPC confirmed officers had followed the Passat for almost seven minutes before abandoning the pursuit when it went the wrong way down the A66.
Cleveland Police said there is ‘no evidence to indicate that filming of the activities that took place on Friday night and Saturday morning has taken place for the purposes of TikTok.’ Earlier, BBC Verify reported that a TikTok account believed to belong to Saddington had previously shared videos showing young men driving dangerously. The government called for social media platforms to remove posts celebrating such behaviour.
Tributes and fundraiser for the officers’ families
An online fundraiser set up for the families of the two officers by the Cleveland Police Federation raised more than £750,000 by Tuesday morning.
PC Blades’ wife said he ‘gave his life in the line of duty, protecting and serving others with courage, dedication and selflessness’. Before joining Cleveland Police, PC Blades worked as an English teacher at Carmel College in Darlington. The college said: ‘Many within our community will remember Matty as an intelligent, kind and approachable teacher, a valued colleague and someone who gave generously of himself to the young people in his care.’
The family of PC Clough, a former soldier, described him as ‘our hero’, saying he ‘jumped into action whenever needed’ and was ‘willing to help anyone for any reason’. Their statement added that he ‘proudly fought for his country to make the world a better place’.
Flags at Cleveland Police headquarters are flying at half-mast. Redcar and Cleveland Council has opened a book of condolence at its offices on Ridley Street in Redcar, and floral tributes can be left at the memorial garden at the force’s headquarters in Hemlington or at any Cleveland Police station.
