Staffordshire police lost sight of car just moments before two friends died in 120mph crash after chase
Staffordshire Police officers[1] lost sight of a car just moments before it crashed killing two of its occupants, an inquest has heard. The car – an Audi S3 – was travelling at 120mph before the tragedy.
An inquest into the crash – which happened at on the A460 Cannock Road near Essington on the Wolverhampton-Staffordshire border – concluded on Friday (September 22). An investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has concluded that officers pursued the car in line with policy and procedure.
William Craddock and Kaya Morrison-Taylor – who were both from Walsall and aged 22 – died in the crash which happened just before 4am on August 21, 2021. POlice said Kaya failed to stop when an unmarked police pulled up behind them on Backcrofts car park in Cannock.
Officers wanted to speak to the occupants in connection with an assault which had been reported but Audi turned into Avon Road as a second unmarked police car approached.
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That car then led the pursuit for around four-and-a-half minutes before it was ended when officers lost sight of the vehicle about a mile-and-a-half from where it crashed. A short time later, both police vehicles came across the collision on the A460, near the junction with Wood Hayes Road, where the Audi had lost control on a bend and struck a telegraph pole and a tree.
Kaya and William, who was a back seat passenger, were confirmed dead at the scene. Police officers provided first aid to another man who was in the front seat. He survived his injuries.
The road traffic collision report showed that there was no contact at any point between the police vehicles and the Audi, which was calculated to have been travelling at speeds in excess of 120mph between Cannock and the scene of the collision. An investigation did not identify any conduct issues for the officers involved.
IOPC Regional Director for the West Midlands, Derrick Campbell, said: “Tragically two men lost their lives as a result of this collision. Our thoughts are with their families, friends and all those affected by their deaths.
“Our investigation was independent of the police and aimed to establish what happened in the lead up to the collision. We found the officers acted appropriately and in line with procedures.
“The evidence we gathered was provided to the coroner to assist with the inquest proceedings, which we hope has helped answer some of the families’ questions about that night.” A spokesperson for IOPC added: “After we were notified about the collision by Staffordshire Police we sent investigators to the scene and the police post incident procedure to begin gathering information and initial accounts from the officers.
“During our investigation we took statements from independent witnesses, analysed CCTV from along the route of the pursuit and also reviewed police body worn video footage.”
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References
- ^ Staffordshire Police officers (www.stokesentinel.co.uk)
- ^ Mum and daughter batter woman as feud descends into violence (www.stokesentinel.co.uk)
- ^ or click here (www.stokesentinel.co.uk)