A 63-year-old man has died and a woman is in a critical condition following a serious crash on the M4 near Heathrow Airport. The collision occurred between Junctions 3 and 4B in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
Police said the man was pronounced dead at the scene after his white VW Golf was involved in the crash. A 62-year-old woman was taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries, while a 29-year-old man sustained injuries that are not life-threatening. A black BMW 320i was also involved, and its driver fled on foot.
The BMW had been pursued by Thames Valley Police prior to the collision on suspicion of theft of a motor vehicle, but officers were not in pursuit at the time of the crash. The suspect is described as an Asian man of heavy build, wearing dark clothing and carrying a black rucksack.
Detective Inspector John Millward of the Met's Roads and Transport Policing said: 'Our thoughts are with the families and friends of the people involved. We urge anyone with information, particularly CCTV or dashcam footage, to contact police.'
National Highways reported delays of around two hours with six miles of congestion between Junction 1 and the closure at Junction 3. The motorway remains closed for collision investigation and cleanup work.
