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Cardiff riot: Police force refers itself to watchdog as CCTV shows van following e-bike before fatal crash

Cardiff riot: Police force refers itself to watchdog as CCTV shows van following e-bike before fatal crash

South Wales Police has referred itself to the policing watchdog as CCTV footage showed one of their vans following two people on an electric bike before a fatal crash.

The serious collision, which killed two teenagers, sparked a riot in the Ely area of Cardiff last night, with 15 officers being injured.

Kyrees Sullivan, 16, and 15-year-old Harvey Evans, died while riding an electric scooter.

The video, lasting a few seconds, shows a bike travelling along Frank Road in Ely at 5.59pm on Monday less than one mile from the suspected crash site on Snowden Road with a marked police van a few metres behind it.

Disorder erupted ‘because police would not let parents get close to scene’

Image:
Footage shows a police van following an electric bike

Some residents in the district claimed the teenagers were being pursued by South Wales Police – an allegation denied by the force.

Officers say none of their vehicles were on Snowden Road when the crash happened.

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They added that they have received footage that “shows a police vehicle following a bike at just prior to 6pm” and the video is forming part of their investigation.

The force said it received a report of a serious collision at 6.03pm on Monday and an electric bike has been seized from the scene.

“At this stage, we do not believe that any other vehicle was involved,” Chief Superintendent Martyn Stone said.

South Wales Police has now referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

The footage was taken at the house where a relative of one of the boys lived.

Police said the collision had already occurred when officers arrived, and they remained at the scene to manage “large-scale disorder” until early on Tuesday.

The unrest erupted after the fatal road collision, with fireworks and other missiles thrown at a line of officers with riot shields who were blocking one end of the street.

Jane Palmer's Ford Focus was set on fire in the chaos

At a news conference, Chief Superintendent Stone revealed that 15 officers needed medical attention following the disorder. Eleven went to hospital and four were treated at the scene.

Harvey’s godmother Jenny Sampson, who confirmed the identities of the two boys to Sky News, said the disorder broke out because police wouldn’t let their parents get close to the crash scene.

She said: “Basically we were all at the scene, the police were just having none of it, they wouldn’t let the mums, the dads come up and see their own kids laying on the floor.

“They wouldn’t let [the parents] do nothing, it was disgusting how they treated them, and they made them walk home and give them the news in the house, didn’t give them any sort of news at the scene, we were there for hours waiting and waiting and they still wouldn’t let them through to see if their son was OK.”

Council workers secure the area immediately around a car that was set alight in Ely, Cardiff, following the riot that broke out after two teenagers died in a crash. Tensions reached breaking point after officers were called to the collision, in Snowden Road, Ely, at about 6pm on Monday. Officers faced what they called "large-scale disorder", with at least two cars torched as trouble involving scores of youths flared for hours. Picture date: Tuesday May 23, 2023.
Council workers clear debris from the area immediately around a car that was set alight in Ely, Cardiff, following the riot that broke out after two teenagers died in a crash. Tensions reached breaking point after officers were called to the collision, in Snowden Road, Ely, at about 6pm on Monday. Officers faced what they called "large-scale disorder", with at least two cars torched as trouble involving scores of youths flared for hours. Picture date: Tuesday May 23, 2023.

Asked what caused the rioting, Ms Sampson said: “The police, how bad the police treated everybody, you can’t treat families like that… With two young kids laying on the floor, and their own family couldn’t even get to them, they couldn’t even see their own son’s last breaths, it’s wrong and it’s disgusting.”

She added: “They were telling everybody to go away and you can’t do that… We were all standing there for about two to three hours before anyone had any information.

“It was really, really bad.”

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South Wales police refers itself to watchdog

Chief Superintendent Stone told reporters: “I would like to acknowledge the impact last night’s disorder had on local residents, who are understandably very frightened.”

The scene in Ely, Cardiff, following the riot that broke out after two teenagers died in a crash. Tensions reached breaking point after officers were called to the collision, in Snowden Road, Ely, at about 6pm on Monday. Officers faced what they called "large-scale disorder", with at least two cars torched as trouble involving scores of youths flared for hours. Picture date: Tuesday May 23, 2023.

He vowed to “arrest all of those responsible. A number of arrests have already been made and more will follow”.

“South Wales Police has also made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct to ensure the matter receives independent scrutiny.”

He appealed for witnesses and said footage can be submitted on its website.