Organised crime arrests as police investigate A66 crash that killed two officers
Cleveland Police have arrested 12 people following a fatal A66 crash that killed two police officers and five occupants of a vehicle involved in a police pursuit. The investigation is linked to organized crime activity involving dangerous driving and firearms.
Why it matters
The incident highlights the severe risks posed by organized criminal groups and the dangers faced by law enforcement in high-speed pursuits.
Image source, Cleveland Police Image caption, PC Matthew Blades and PC Tom Clough were killed in a crash near Middlesbrough on Saturday
Twelve people have been arrested as part of the investigation into the A66 crash that killed seven people, including two police officers.
Nine men and three women, aged between 19 and 61, have been arrested across Teesside on suspicion of a range of offences including possession of a firearm and being part of an organised crime group.
In the early hours of Saturday, a Volkswagen Passat that had been pursued by police travelled the wrong way down the A66 near Middlesbrough and crashed into an oncoming police car - two PCs and all five Passat occupants died.
Cleveland Police said it was investigating "serious criminal activity that resulted in this fatal incident".
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