Seven people die in head-on collision on A66 near Middlesbrough

Seven people died in a wrong-way crash on the A66 near Middlesbrough in the early hours of Saturday morning. A Volkswagen Passat was driving in the wrong direction when it hit a Cleveland Police armed response car head-on at around 3:39 AM. Two officers in the police vehicle, PC Matthew Blades, 37, and PC Tom Clough, 38, were killed. All five people in the Passat also died. They were Micheal Ray, Theo Rae, Cole Worthy, Jakub Matusiak, and Makai Saddington. Police had been chasing the Passat through residential streets before it reached the A66, but the chase had stopped before the crash happened. Ring doorbell footage recorded the pursuit at 3:36 AM. The Independent Office for Police Conduct has opened a mandatory investigation into the incident.