Police in the north east have condemned the torching of five cars at a vigil in Haswell, County Durham, on Thursday night (27 August) as 'completely unacceptable'. The vehicles were set alight on a privately-owned field during a memorial event for Michael Cahill, one of the men killed in the devastating crash on the A66 in Middlesbrough last weekend. One of the cars was reported to be an £80,000 Porsche Cayenne.
Officers let cars burn out
Durham Constabulary said officers decided to let the cars burn out at the vigil, where people gathered in memory of Mr Cahill. The force condemned the behaviour of a crowd who torched the vehicles, as others in the group released balloons, flares, and fireworks. Nobody was injured and no arrests were made.
Assistant Chief Constable Jon McAdam said officers decided to let the cars burn because "the field was contained and it was assessed there was no immediate risk to wider public safety."
Force condemns disorder
"The behaviour we saw at last night’s gathering was completely unacceptable," he said. "Our officers and the communities of County Durham and Darlington were understandably horrified by the tragedy which unfolded on the A66 last week which resulted in multiple deaths, including two serving police officers."
Mr McAdam added: "We utterly condemn anyone who would use that tragedy as an excuse for disorder and expect the overwhelming majority of the public would join us in doing so."
Extra officers drafted in
Hundreds of extra police officers were drafted in on Friday (28 August) after a series of deadly incidents, starting with the head-on crash that killed two police officers and five young men last Saturday (22 August) and a house fire which claimed the lives of a seven-year-old girl and her aunt on Wednesday (26 August).
Around 200 additional officers are now assisting under-pressure Cleveland Police staff amid reports of other incidents, including a stabbing and properties being rammed. The reinforcements came from a number of forces, including the National Crime Agency (NCA).
Politician calls incidents terrorism
The crime spree has been labelled as "terrorism" by a local politician. Labour MP for Middlesbrough and Thornaby East, Andy McDonald, told Times Radio: "People are saying that they are going to their shops and not feeling safe to do so and feeling trapped in their own homes. That is just unacceptable."
He added: "This is terrorism and we’ve got to have an appropriate response to deal with the people who are causing such mayhem in our communities and to allow people to lead their peaceful lives. That isn’t happening. We need the resources."
Arrests and charges
A 21-year-old man arrested over the investigation into events leading up to the fatal A66 crash was charged with a drugs offence. Cleveland Police said Kai Inico, who was arrested on Monday (24 August) on suspicion of participating in an organised crime group, has been charged with possession with intent to supply a class B drug.
Pc Matthew Blades, 37, and Pc Tom Clough, 38, died in last Saturday's head-on collision with a Volkswagen Passat travelling the wrong way on the A66 at South Bank. Cole Worthy, 17, Theo Rae, 17, Makai Saddington, 18, and 23-year-olds Mr Cahill and Jakub Matusiak were also killed in the incident.
The force said four other people arrested by Cleveland Police have also been bailed – a 16-year-old boy and 18-year-old man arrested on suspicion of participating in an organised crime group, a 55-year-old man arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender and a 23-year-old man arrested on suspicion of threats to kill. Earlier this week, two people were charged with offences and appeared in court and 10 others were bailed.
Meanwhile, two men have been arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the fire which killed Natalie McDonald, 34, and seven-year-old Valentina Foster and injured four others in Grangetown on Wednesday.
