One of the teenage joyriders whose car crashed into two constables on a dual carriageway, killing both officers, had been awaiting trial over allegations that he racially abused and assaulted police, it has emerged.
Makai Saddington, 18, was among five young men travelling in a VW Passat that sped the wrong way along the A66. He had been charged with assaulting Sergeant Rooker of Cleveland Police and causing racially aggravated alarm or distress to PC Chowdhury.
Saddington, who had no fixed address, appeared before Teesside magistrates for the first time on July 17. The case was adjourned to a later date.
It has also been reported that, in the months before his death, the teenager appeared to have shared a series of clips showing him involved in other police pursuits.
PC Matthew Blades, 37, and PC Tom Clough, 38, were killed alongside the five so-called “TikTok joyriders” in a devastating head-on crash in the early hours of Saturday.
The young men in the vehicle have been named as Michael Robert Cahill, 23; Theo Rae, 17; Cole Robert Worthy, 17; Jacob Matusiak, 23; and Makai Saddington, 18.
They had been fleeing police when the VW Passat was driven the wrong way down the A66 near Middlesbrough before colliding with the officers, who were not part of the pursuit.
The police chase had been abandoned around ten seconds before the fatal collision.
Makai Saddington, 18, was awaiting trial on charges of racially abusing and assaulting officers
Close friends Theo Rae (left) and Cole Robert Worthy were both killed in the crash in the early hours of Saturday
Michael Robert Cahill (left) and Jakub Matusiak (right) were another two of the five in the VW Passat
Meanwhile, the families of the two officers have paid moving tributes to the heroes, and a GoFundMe appeal launched by Cleveland Police Federation to support them had by Monday morning raised more than £200,000.
PC Clough’s family said: ‘He was our hero with a fantastic sense of humour. Jumped into action whenever needed, and willing to help anyone for any reason.
‘Proudly fought for his country to make the world a better place. Always on public duty throughout his short life.
‘We as a family and Tom’s partner would like to express our sincere gratitude for the overwhelming support and condolences from friends, colleagues and the wider community.’
PC Blades’ widow said on Sunday evening that ‘no words will ever feel like the right words to honour our Matt’, who she described as ‘my beloved husband, my best friend, and the most devoted father to our two young boys’.
‘He was an adored son and brother, a perfect son-in-law, and the most fun uncle. He was loved beyond words by all his family and friends, and his loss has left a space that can never be filled.
‘He gave his life in the line of duty, protecting and serving others with courage, dedication and selflessness. The pain of losing him is beyond words, and our lives will never be the same. Neither will the love he gave us ever fade.
‘Our children will grow up knowing what an incredible father he was and will always be, and I will carry his love, his memory and everything we shared with me always.’
PC Matthew Blades was remembered by his widow as an ‘incredible father’ and ‘beloved husband’
PC Tom Clough has been remembered by his family as a ‘hero with a fantastic sense of humour’
She also thanked all the emergency services and the ‘police family’ for their support.
In their own tribute, Cleveland Police Federation said: ‘PC Matt Blades and PC Tom Clough were both dedicated and committed Police Officers who left their families and went to work to serve their community and protect the public.
‘They paid the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. They did not return home to their families.
‘They leave behind heartbroken loved ones who will struggle to come to terms with the loss of their loved one.’
In the wake of the tragedy, previous footage appearing to show the young men driving recklessly and being chased by police has emerged.
A clip shared on TikTok this May seemed to show 23-year-old Jacob Matusiak behind the wheel, with the caption: ‘Unfortunately I’m not a nonchalant boyfriend’.
Filmed by the driver, it shows a car barreling through a neighbourhood before swerving onto a green in the middle of an estate.
In broad daylight, the vehicle appears to career down a footpath as the driver casually spins the wheel with one hand.
The men’s VW Passat going the wrong way down the A66 smashed into an armoured response vehicle
Makai Saddington had also posted a string of TikTok clips seemingly showing him taking part in police chases in the months before his death.
One clip filmed in May and set to rap music showed the 18-year-old being driven in an Audi speeding through a housing estate with the blue lights of a police car in pursuit flashing.
Another video on an account linked to him shows a green Nissan being driven around before it is set alight, while images posted elsewhere show him and a friend posing in cars wearing black balaclavas.
Their deadly antics have been linked to a TikTok trend where young men film themselves driving dangerously and baiting police into chasing them for thrills and views.
The Middlesborough crash came just six days after a crash in County Kildare, Ireland, when five teenagers died in a head-on crash while driving the wrong way down a motorway and being chased by police.
The masked youngsters were in a stolen BMW that sped off down the wrong side of the M9 to avoid a stinger device.
Three sisters and a seven-year-old boy in the car they struck were seriously injured and remain in hospital.
Craze that claimed five more young lives just a week ago
By Padraic Flanagan
It was feared on Saturday night that the A66 crash may be a copycat tragedy – thanks to the deadly TikTok craze that claimed the lives of five teenagers in a head-on motorway smash in the Irish Republic last week.
In that case, the youngsters, who were all wearing balaclavas in a stolen BMW travelling the wrong way down the country’s M9, died at the scene in Co Kildare in the early hours of Sunday.
The deaths of Joey Carthy, 15, Jack Kennedy, 17, Alex McCarthy, 16, Jeremy O’Brien, 18, and 17-year-old Kamil Pustkowski led to public fury at social media platforms after it emerged that the teenagers were filming themselves in the car.
That anger intensified on Thursday when TikTok declined an invitation to appear before an Irish parliamentary committee on media to discuss the latest craze of posting videos of people driving the wrong way down motorways.
Sisters Ella Hendricken, who is in her 20s, and Niamh and Alma Kinsella, in their 30s, as well as Alma’s seven-year-old son, Yemi, are being treated in hospital for serious injuries after their Hyundai was hit by the BMW.
The innocent victims, from Graiguecullen, Co Carlow, were on their way to Dublin to fly out for a family wedding in the UK when the teens smashed into their car. Three of the five teens killed in the M9 tragedy were buried on Friday. Two more funerals are due to take place today and on Tuesday.
Videos featuring youngsters in stolen cars trying to bait police into high-speed chases have become a macabre trend.
Mary Aiken, a professor of forensic cyber-psychology at the University of East London, told The Guardian: ‘While driving, they’re simultaneously filming and capturing content for posting later or live streaming. They have one foot in the real world and one foot in cyberspace. They’re thinking about the likes… about kudos.’
