VEHICLES SET ALIGHT AT VIGIL FOR A66 CRASH VICTIM

Vehicles were set on fire and flares released during a vigil in County Durham for Michael Cahill, a 23-year-old killed in a head-on collision on the A66. The crash occurred on Saturday following a police pursuit in Teesside and killed seven people in total: two Cleveland Police officers and five young men. Cleveland Police has arrested 17 people as part of investigations into alleged organised crime linked to the fatal collision.

The incidents at the vigil form part of a broader pattern of violence in the area. More than 200 additional police officers have been deployed following further violent incidents, including a fatal house fire and a stabbing. Two men have been arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the house fire, which killed a 34-year-old woman and her seven-year-old niece.

Cleveland Police has not yet released further statements regarding the circumstances surrounding the vehicles set alight at the vigil or the wider disturbances. The force continues its investigation into the A66 collision and the connected organised crime allegations.