Andrew Tettenborn
The ugly scenes in Middlesbrough over the last week would not look out of place in a war zone. In the early hours of Saturday, five youths and two police officers died in a head-on crash on the A66 on the outskirts of the city. The collision, and the events leading up to it, have shone a light on a murky world of organised crime and lawlessness in Middlesbrough.
Locals are, understandably, terrified by what is unfolding on the streets that they call home
Before the crash, another car was seen ramming properties. One of the houses that was targeted belonged to the father of a teenager, Cole Worthy, 17, who died in the accident on the A66. Since the crash, nine men and three women, aged between 18 and 61, have been arrested across Teesside. They were held on a range of alleged offences, including possession of a firearm and being part of an organised crime group.
On Wednesday, a murder investigation was launched in the city after two people died in a house fire about two miles from the A66 crash. The blaze in Grangetown broke out just before 5.30am yesterday. Cleveland Police said it was investigating what had happened and was ‘keeping an open mind’. The force said that it ‘cannot rule out any links to wider organised crime at this time’.
