Previously shared social media footage has emerged showing one of the young men killed in the fatal A66 crash near Middlesbrough apparently driving recklessly several months before the tragedy.
A TikTok clip posted in May appears to show 23-year-old Jacob Matusiak behind the wheel of a car travelling rapidly through a residential area.
The vehicle can be seen swerving onto a green space before continuing along what appears to be a footpath, while the driver casually handles the steering wheel with one hand.
The footage has resurfaced as investigators examine the events that led to Saturday morning’s devastating collision.
Seven people died in the A66 collision
Matusiak was one of five occupants of a Volkswagen Passat who died when the vehicle was travelling on the wrong side of the A66 and collided head-on with a marked police vehicle.
The crash also claimed the lives of Cleveland Police officers PC Matthew Blades, 37, and PC Tom Clough, 38.
All seven people were pronounced dead at the scene.
Police have said the Passat was believed to have been operating with cloned registration plates.
The vehicle had attracted the attention of officers after the plates triggered an Automatic Number Plate Recognition camera.
Police pursuit ended moments before fatal crash
Cleveland Police said officers in another vehicle had pursued the Passat for around seven minutes before abandoning the chase after the car entered the A66.
The pursuit was not being conducted by the police vehicle carrying PC Blades and PC Clough.
Footage from a doorbell camera reportedly captured the Passat travelling at speed through Middlesbrough at around 3.36am.
The fatal collision occurred minutes later when the car entered the path of the other marked police vehicle.
Police said the collision happened at approximately 3.39am.
The two officers were reportedly in the area independently of the earlier pursuit.
Another victim linked to high-speed videos
Matusiak was not the only person among the five young men whose previous social media activity has come under scrutiny.
Videos linked to 18-year-old Makai Saddington have also emerged, including footage apparently showing him being driven at high speed while police pursued the vehicle.
In one clip filmed in May, Saddington appears to be inside an Audi as it travels rapidly through a housing estate with police lights visible behind it.
The vehicle subsequently crosses a grassed area.
Other material associated with Saddington appears to show a green Nissan being driven before being set alight.
Separate photographs show him and another person wearing black balaclavas while posing inside vehicles.
The material has renewed concerns about a growing online culture in which dangerous driving and police pursuits are filmed and shared for attention.
Families mourn officers killed on duty
The deaths of PC Blades and PC Clough have prompted an outpouring of grief across Cleveland.
PC Clough’s family remembered him as a proud officer and described him as a hero with a great sense of humour who was always willing to help others.
They also thanked colleagues, friends and members of the wider community for the support shown following his death.
PC Blades, meanwhile, was remembered as a devoted husband and father of two.
His social media presence included photographs from Manchester United matches and his participation in a half marathon.
He had also recently taken on a coaching role with Seaton Carew FC and was preparing to coach its under-seven team, which includes his own son.
The football club described Blades and his son as much-loved members of its community.
Police force pays tribute to fallen colleagues
Cleveland Police lowered its flags to half-mast following the deaths of the officers.
Chief Constable Victoria Fuller said she and Deputy Chief Constable David Felton had visited the families to offer condolences and support.
She described the officers as brave men who had been protecting their communities and serving local residents when they lost their lives.
Lauren Somerville, chairman of the Cleveland Police Federation, said the loss had caused profound pain within the force and described the fact that the officers would not return home to their loved ones as unfathomable.
Cleveland’s Police and Crime Commissioner Matt Storey also said the incident would have a major impact on what he described as a tightly connected police family.
Five young men also named
Police have identified the five occupants of the Passat as Michael Robert Cahill, 23, Theo Rae, 17, Cole Robert Worthy, 17, Jacob Matusiak, 23, and Makai Saddington, 18.
Tributes have since been shared by relatives and friends.
Cahill was remembered online as a kind and down-to-earth young man.
Friends described Worthy’s death as devastating, while tributes to Rae highlighted his friendship with Worthy and described him as someone with a generous nature.
Matusiak’s sister described her brother as her best friend and said she was heartbroken by his death.
Saddington was also remembered by the mother of his young son, who expressed her grief on social media.
Concern over a wider social media trend
The tragedy has drawn attention to a wider pattern of young people recording dangerous driving and police pursuits for social media.
The concern has become particularly acute after a separate fatal crash in Ireland claimed the lives of five teenagers just days before the Middlesbrough incident.
Those teenagers had been travelling in a stolen BMW the wrong way along the M9 in County Kildare when they collided with another vehicle.
The occupants of that vehicle, including three sisters and a seven-year-old boy, suffered serious injuries.
The Irish tragedy prompted anger after it emerged that the teenagers had been recording their activities.
Experts warn of online pressure
Professor Mary Aiken, a forensic cyber-psychology expert at the University of East London, has previously highlighted the dangers created when social media attention becomes intertwined with risky behaviour.
She has described young drivers as effectively operating in two worlds at once, concentrating on the physical act of driving while also thinking about filming, posting, likes and online recognition.
That dynamic has intensified concern that dangerous driving can become content rather than simply reckless behaviour.
Investigation remains ongoing
The Independent Office for Police Conduct has opened an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the A66 crash.
Authorities are examining the sequence of events, including the earlier police pursuit and the circumstances in which the Passat entered the path of the officers’ vehicle.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham expressed his thanks to emergency responders who attended the scene, while politicians and police representatives have offered condolences to the families of all seven people who died.
Flowers have since been placed in memory of the victims as investigators continue their work.
Community left shocked by the crash
Residents living near the route have described hearing the vehicles travelling at extraordinary speed shortly before the collision.
Neil Hutchison, 47, who lives around a mile from the crash site, said the sound of vehicles speeding through the area woke residents.
He described seeing two police vehicles apparently following another car.
The tragedy has left both the police community and local residents confronting the devastating consequences of a few minutes of high-speed driving.
What’s next?
Investigators are expected to continue reconstructing the events leading to the collision, including the earlier pursuit and the movements of the Passat immediately before the crash.
The emergence of older TikTok footage is also likely to intensify debate over dangerous-driving content online and the responsibility of social media platforms to address material that glorifies reckless behaviour.
For the families of the seven victims, however, the investigation comes amid an immediate and deeply personal period of grief.
Summary
Seven people, including two Cleveland Police officers, died in a devastating collision on the A66 near Middlesbrough after a Volkswagen Passat travelling the wrong way on the road struck their marked police vehicle.
Previous social media footage apparently showing two of the young men engaging in reckless driving has emerged following the crash, raising renewed concerns about an online trend involving high-speed driving, police pursuits and the pursuit of social media attention.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct is investigating the circumstances surrounding the crash, while the families, colleagues and communities connected to all seven victims continue to mourn their loss.
