Police have arrested 50 people and confiscated weapons, drugs and cash as part of a major crackdown on gang violence following the fatal A66 crash.
Among those detained are 10 people linked to a red Volvo XC60 accused of ramming homes in Middlesbrough. The incidents are believed to have set off the chain of events that ended with the deaths of five young men and two police officers.
Detectives believe the Volvo was deliberately reversed into the front window of the home belonging to Gye Worthy, the father of 17-year-old gang member Cole Worthy, causing significant damage.
There is no indication that 39-year-old Gye Worthy was involved in criminal activity. However, the attack on his property is thought to have triggered the events that culminated in the deadly crash.
The Volvo is then alleged to have targeted the homes of the mother and grandmother of another 17-year-old gang member, Theo Rae.
Just minutes later, Worthy, Rae, 23-year-olds Michael Cahill and Jakub Matusiak, and 18-year-old Makai Saddington reportedly set out in the early hours of August 22 to find the Volvo.
The group travelled through the streets in a Volkswagen Passat before Cleveland Police officers spotted them and began a high-speed pursuit through Teesville, Middlesbrough.
The Passat then entered the A66 dual carriageway in the wrong direction and collided head-on with an armed response vehicle carrying PC Tom Clough, 38, and PC Matthew Blades, 37.
Ten of those arrested are linked to a red Volvo XC60 alleged to have rammed properties in Middlesbrough, including the home of Cole Worthy’s father, in an incident believed to have sparked the events leading to the A66 tragedy
Everyone travelling in the two vehicles died in the crash, which happened at 3.39am.
This publication understands that those in the Volvo and Passat were associated with rival gangs operating within an organised criminal network across Teesside.
Cleveland Police said the investigation has now resulted in 50 arrests—39 men and 11 women—in the period since the tragedy.
Officers have seized three shotguns, two handguns, ammunition, machetes, knives and pepper spray. They have also recovered around £60,000 worth of class A and class B drugs, along with £34,750 in cash.
The alleged offences include involvement in an organised crime group, possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, supplying drugs, arson, making threats to kill and criminal damage.
So far, 15 people have been charged.
Cameron Coxall, 19, from Redcar, received a two-month sentence after throwing a brick at a police vehicle travelling along Kings Road in Middlesbrough on August 25.
Police have also taken safeguarding action involving three children.
PC Matthew Blades, a father of two, died when his police vehicle was hit head-on by a VW Passat travelling in the wrong direction on the A66 near Middlesbrough
PC Tom Clough was also killed in the collision, which took place about 10 seconds after the pursuit of the Volkswagen had been abandoned
Cole Worthy (right) pictured with fellow gang member Theo Rae, who was also killed in the crash
Jacob Matusiak, another occupant of the car which hit the officers’ patrol vehicle
Makai Saddington, one of the five killed in the VW during the incident on August 22
Michael Robert Cahill, 23, died alongside his four friends and two police officers in the crash
Detective Chief Superintendent Helen Barker, head of crime for Cleveland Police, said: ‘This activity is testament to our commitment in tackling serious and organised crime.
‘Over the last two months, we have identified 50 people who we believe are associated within criminal networks that seek to cause serious violence and harm within the community through the supply of drugs.
‘Ten of those arrests are directly linked to the Volvo that is reported to have been involved in driving into two properties in Middlesbrough on the morning of Saturday 22 August.
‘Our pursuit of this criminality will continue, and I want to take this opportunity to thank the community for their support and patience but also for the information that we keep receiving.
‘I want to encourage you to keep on reporting behaviour that is related to drugs or organised crime – no matter how small – and be assured that we will act.’
She added that Operation Sentinel – which has been targeting serious and organised crime – has involved Cleveland Police working alongside the North East Regional Organised Crime Unit (NEROCU), National Crime Agency (NCA) and more than 200 reinforcements sent from other forces around the country.
