London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Jul 25, 2025

Cardiff riots: Police refer themselves to watchdog after crash deaths

Cardiff riots: Police refer themselves to watchdog after crash deaths

Police are verifying CCTV showing a police van following two people on an electric bike minutes before a fatal crash that sparked a riot in Cardiff.

Those who died were named locally as Kyrees Sullivan, 16, and Harvey Evans, 15.

The footage shows the South Wales Police van and the bike 900m, or just over half a mile, from the crash site.

But police said none of their vehicles were on Snowden Road in Ely - where the crash was - at the time it happened.

The video analysed by BBC Verify is time-stamped to 17:59 BST on Monday on Frank Road.

Tributes were left to the two teenagers who died in Ely


Local people had earlier claimed on social media that police were pursuing the bike.

Police said the collision had already occurred when officers arrived, and they remained on the scene to manage "large-scale disorder" until the early hours of Tuesday morning.

Then South Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Alun Michael had denied the boys were being pursued by officers.

"We have received footage that shows a police vehicle following a bike at just prior to 6pm," Ch Supt Martyn Stone said in a statement outside Cardiff Bay police station on Tuesday evening.

He declined to answer questions after the statement.

The footage "will assist us in piecing together the circumstances leading up to the collision," he added.

Mr Michael later declined to comment on the footage of the police van.

"You should examine the carefully-worded statement from the chief superintendent," he said.

A car burns amid disorder in the Cardiff suburb of Ely


"We can confirm that the following investigations have been carried out so far, and that when the collision occurred there was no police vehicle on Snowden Road," Ch Supt Stone said.

"At this stage we do not believe any other vehicles were involved."

The force has made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), he confirmed.

An IOPC spokesperson said: "We will be sending investigators to a police post incident procedure to begin gathering information and to assess whether the IOPC will carry out an independent investigation".

On Tuesday night, 24 hours after the trouble began, dozens of young people gathered near hundreds of floral tributes on Snowden Road. The mood in the area was calm.

That was in contrast to Monday, when cars were set alight, fireworks set off and paving slabs thrown at police as more than 100 people gathered following the crash.

"Fifteen police officers were injured, 11 were taken to hospital, and four were treated at the scene," Ch Supt Stone said.

Litter and burnt cars were left on the street in Ely, Cardiff


A number of arrests have already been made he said, "and there will be more to come".

"Residents have our assurances that we will be doing our best to arrest those responsible," he added.


'Understandably frightened'


Police were called to the crash shortly after 18:00 BST on Monday.

At about 20:00, police tweeted that they were still at the scene of the collision but were also working to "de-escalate" disorder.

The force said it had received a large number of calls from "understandably frightened" residents.

The Welsh Ambulance Service said it was called back to the scene at 22:30 and took five people to hospital.


Resident Vikki Takata said she saw "loads of riot vans" from her window, and a helicopter that was "shining the torch down on us".

"It was carnage," she recalled. "I've never seen anything like it other than on the telly."

Other eyewitnesses said young people were chasing police officers up the road and throwing stones and missiles at cars.

"The police with the shields were all literally opposite my car," Ms Takata recalled. "It was quite frightening."

The force said its thoughts were with the families of the two boys who had died as well as those affected by the rioting.

A car was set on fire and tipped on its roof


Bridy Bool, who knows the Evans family, said Harvey had "loads of friends" and loved motorbikes and football.

"He was best friends with Kyrees and [they] were into the same things. It was not unusual for them to be together," she said.

Ms Bool said she believed the pair were being chased by officers "as there are videos going around".

A car with its windows smashed on Snowden Road in Ely


Minister for Social Justice Jane Hutt told the Senedd on Tuesday afternoon that more arrests are expected.

First Minister Mark Drakeford - whose Cardiff West constituency includes Ely - said he was "very concerned" by the "upsetting reports".

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's spokesperson said what had happened was "appalling and completely unacceptable".

Plaid Cymru and the Welsh Liberal Democrats have called for a full investigation. Welsh Conservative Senedd group leader Andrew RT Davies called it "deeply concerning".

Cardiff council leader Huw Thomas appealed for calm, and said the local authority was "assisting with the clean-up, so we can rebuild and project a more positive image of Ely".

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
×