Mother of Cardiff e-bike crash victim says 'police killed my son'

‘Police killed my son’: Furious mother of Cardiff e-bike crash victim blasts South Wales force – as witness who captured boys on CCTV says they were ‘panicking’ and scared of a police van behind them

• Kyrees Sullivan and Harvey Evans were fatally injured in a crash on Monday night
• Police insist a marked van that followed them was half-a-mile away at the time

The mother of one of the teenage boys killed when their e-bike crashed after being followed by a police van has lashed out at officers, claiming they ‘killed my son’. 

Kyrees Sullivan, 16, and Harvey Evans, 15, were fatally injured after they crashed on a council estate in Ely, Cardiff, on Monday night – less than two minutes after a marked police van was seen tailing them on CCTV.

Their deaths sparked riots in the deprived council estate as police initially dismissed the teenagers were being chased by police – and yesterday South Wales Police insisted the van in question was half-a-mile away at the time of the incident.

However, one witness who caught the pair cycling on CCTV says the boys appeared scared of the vehicle, having ‘panicked’ and attempting to flee after coming across it on the road.

It comes as the heartbroken families of the boys paid tribute to them, describing them as ‘best friends since they were young’ and revealing their passing had left their hearts ‘truly broken’.

Harvey Evans (left) and Kyrees Sullivan (right), pictured here when they were younger, were both killed after the e-bike they were on crashed in Ely, Cardiff, on Monday evening, May 22

The pair were seen on CCTV being followed by a marked police van, with one witness saying the pair appeared ‘panicked’

A vigil for Kyrees and Harvey was held last night, days after angry locals threw rocks and fireworks at the police – injuring 15 officers in the process – as well as set cars on fire as they rioted in the aftermath of the crash.

At the vigil, Belinda Sullivan, mother of Kyrees, blasted the South Wales force, telling The Daily Telegraph: ‘The police killed my son. I’ve got nothing else to say.’

South Wales Police has reported itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), which has said it will investigate any interactions officers had with the boys before their deaths.

A relative of Harvey last night told The Times: ‘If they see someone on a Sur-Ron [an e-bike brand], they think they are a drug dealer.

‘The police told Harvey’s family that there were no police vehicles in the area, they didn’t get chased and there was no sighting of them. But there it is, it’s all in the videos.’

One witness whose CCTV captured the moment they were forced to jump out of the way of the bike and the van as they drove past said both were travelling ‘at speed’.

They told the paper: ‘You could see the boys were panicking and trying to get away from them.’

At a press conference on Wednesday, the force’s Deputy Chief Constable, Rachel Bacon, revealed the officers in the van that had initially followed the boys were the first on the scene.

She said the van had been on Grand Avenue, half-a-mile away from the scene of the crash on Snowden Road, when the incident took place.

She said she was ‘aware of concerns in the local community’ and said police initially denied the pursuit because: ‘The situation yesterday [Tuesday] morning was still very unclear.’

Deputy Chief Constable, Rachel Bacon, revealed the officers in the van that had initially followed the boys were the first on the scene after the crash was reported to 999

She insisted she gave an ‘honest account’ but admitted that there were still ‘hundreds of hours’ of investigative work to take place.

Despite the force being investigated by the IOPC, DPP Bacon said no officers had been interviewed under caution or suspended over the boys’ deaths.

Timeline of the crash according to police 

17:59.40 CCTV shows the bike travelling towards the police vehicle in Frank Road. The bike then turns around.

18:00.52 The bike is followed by the police vehicle, which you have already seen on CCTV images. Blue lights or sirens were not illuminated.

18:01.18 Police vehicle is at New Ely Church roundabout and travels through Archer Road, Stanway Road and Howell Road.

18:02.31 Police vehicle turns onto Grand Avenue.

18:02.17 – 18:02.41 approximate time of the road traffic collision in Snowden Road.

At the time of the collision, the police van is in Grand Avenue, half a mile away from Snowden Road.

18:06.59 The police vehicle is on Cowbridge Road West when it receives information about a road traffic collision, illuminates blue lights and makes its way to the collision scene.

She said: ‘On Monday evening a serious road traffic collision happened in Snowden Road, Ely which tragically claimed the lives of Kyrees Sullivan and Harvey Evans, two friends who lived in the community of Ely.

‘Our thoughts are with the families and friends of Kyrees and Harvey and everyone affected by this terrible incident. We can only begin to imagine the grief they are experiencing at this time.

‘The families continue to be supported and updated by family liaison officers.

‘I am aware of concerns in the local community regarding the timeline of events which culminated in the fatal collision, including CCTV footage which shows a police vehicle following a bike in Frank road.’

She said a timeline of events had been established after ‘clear witness accounts, analysing tracking data from police vehicles and studying CCTV’.

According to the official police timeline the bike was being followed by the police van, with no blue flashing lights or siren, at 52 seconds past six on Monday evening.

The alleged chase ended at 18:02.31 when the marked police van turned into Grand Avenue, Ely.

Kyrees and Harvey were in a collision between 18:02.17 – 18:02.41 and died at the scene in Snowden Road, Ely.

She said: ‘There was no police vehicle in Snowden Road at the time of the collision and we believe there were no other vehicles involved in the incident.

‘We have made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct to ensure the matter receives independent scrutiny. We will provide them with all the information we have, and they will undertake an independent investigation.’

She said that despite the boys deaths ‘nothing can excuse the level of violence and disorder which followed’.

She said: ‘Property was damaged and people were scared in their own homes.

‘Our focus now is to fully investigate the circumstances of the collision and the appalling scenes that followed.’

She added: ‘We have already recovered around 180 pieces of body worn footage from police officers at the scene and this number is expected to grow.

‘Officers are also going through hundreds of hours of public CCTV and videos posted on social media.’

One video shows a police van following an e-bike just minutes before the accident that killed the two boys. This image shows the e-bike 

A marked police van then follows behind the bike about one second later 

In questions that followed she admitted no officers had been suspended over the incident and that more facts were still coming to light.

She refused to answer questions on why the boys were being chased or say when the police stopped the chase.

She said: ‘I want to be as transparent and open as I can with the community of Ely so that they understand what has happened. I have set out a timeline based on the factual information that we have but the IOPC are conducting an independent investigation regarding any pursuit has taken place.’

On Wednesday afternoon the families of Kyrees and Harvey released tributes to the pair, while also calling for ‘peace within the community’ while the investigation into their deaths takes place.

Harvey’s family said: ‘Our hearts are truly broken by the sudden death of Harvey, our much-loved son, grandson, brother, nephew, friend and boyfriend.

‘He lived life to the full, he had a big heart and deep down he truly cared. He was a best friend to Kyrees and our thoughts and prayers are with his family also.

‘We ask for peace within the community and request that people leave the investigation to the police so we can get the answers we so desperately need to lay Harvey to rest.

‘As Harvey’s mum, I want to remember our son as the fun and loving son that he was, and not as the media are portraying him now.’

Kyrees and Harvey, pictured here when they were children in a photo released by their family, were followed by a police van minutes before they died

The family of Kyrees Sullivan, pictured here in an undated handout photo, called him a ‘loving, caring handsome young man’

The family of Harvey Evans, pictured right with them in this undated handout photo, said ‘he had a big heart and deep down he truly cared’

Kyrees’s family also paid tribute and thanked the local community for their support since his death.

‘Kyrees was a loving, caring handsome young man, a loving son to Belinda and Craig, little brother to Aleah and Jordan and a special uncle KyKy to Myra,’ they said.

‘He was loved so much by his grandparents and aunties and uncles and his many cousins.

‘Him and Harvey along with Niall were best friends since they were young and went everywhere together, they both had so many friends and were very well liked doing many things together, having fun and laughs.

‘They were loved by not only their families but by their community as well.

‘Belinda, Craig and families, would like to thank everyone for all their kind words, flowers, and messages since they lost their son.’

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