Cars have been torched at a vigil for one of the men who died in the A66 crash, as an MP described the spate of violence in the Middlesbrough area as “terrorism”.
Hundreds of extra police officers have been drafted in after a series of deadly incidents, starting with the head-on crash that killed two police officers and five young men on Saturday and a house fire which claimed the lives of a seven-year-old girl and her aunt on Wednesday.
MP calls violence terrorism
Amid reports of other incidents, including a stabbing and properties being rammed, Labour MP for Middlesbrough and Thornaby East Andy McDonald described it as “terrorism”.
Mr McDonald made the comments as councillors revealed 200 extra police officers were helping under-pressure Cleveland Police staff, and before videos shared on social media appeared to show several cars on fire at a vigil in Haswell, County Durham, where balloons were released in tribute to one of the men killed in the A66 crash.
The extra officers have come from a number of forces, including the National Crime Agency, and are assisting as police continue to investigate the blaze in Grangetown, near Middlesbrough. Police have not ruled out a link between the crash and the fatal house fire.
Community fear and response
Mr 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. 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.”
Mr McDonald earlier told BBC Radio 4 there appeared to be a “causal link with organised crime”.
Vigil incident in Haswell
On Thursday evening, videos shared on social media appeared to show several cars on fire in Haswell. According to reports, the event was being held to remember A66 crash victim Michael Cahill, 23, with footage showing a large crowd gathering on grassland while cars could be seen skidding around the area.
Later on Thursday, more videos shared online appeared to show burnt-out cars being moved from the field, 20 miles north of the crash site, by a tractor. On Friday, remnants of fireworks, smoke canisters and balloons were scattered around a field where cars had been torched, with scorch marks visible on the ground. The cars have been removed but a section of a front bumper remained in place.
Alec Brown, leader of Redcar and Cleveland Council, told Times Radio he has written to Prime Minister Andy Burnham to thank the Government for the additional resources but asking for more.
Mr Brown said: “Over the last five or 10 years, some of our estates – the most deprived in the country – were at the coal-face of austerity. Cleveland Police were slashed by up to 500 officers, and I think what we’re seeing now is them doing an heroic job in very difficult circumstances, with limited resource from what they had in previous years.”
Nine deaths in six days
Mr Brown said two fatal events within a few days was “unprecedented” and had left people “scared”. He said: “We’ve had nine deaths in the space of six days, starting with that horrific A66 crash. To lose nine lives with such close proximity of each other…. that’s led to people feeling unsafe in their own homes.”
He added: “I get there is speculation whether there’s a gang turf war, these type of things, but as you can imagine, if you were to lose nine lives in your community, on your doorstep, you would feel unsafe in your own home.”
He said: “I had an update with the superintendent yesterday, and she’s working 20-hour days. She said reports to the police have been unbelievable over the last week.”
The councillor also said: “I’m from an estate very much like the make-up of South Bank and Grangetown, and I know how wonderful those people are and how close they are. This is why it’s having such an impact on their mentality, because these communities are close. Everybody knows each other, so… one loss is tragic – nine is unbelievable to deal with.”
Victims and arrests
Pc Matthew Blades, 37, and Pc Tom Clough, 38, died in the head-on collision with a Volkswagen Passat travelling the wrong way on the A66 on Saturday 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.
Police have arrested 17 people after the A66 crash, which followed a police pursuit, charging two and bailing the others, as part of investigations into alleged organised crime. 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.
Ms McDonald’s devastated brother Josh Kirton told reporters: “My sister was not involved with anything to do with gangs, or the (crash on the) A66. That’s what makes this so senseless. People think they can do whatever they like. There’s some terrible people in the world and now my sister and Valentina have gone.”
