Three arrested over Doncaster car crash that killed two men

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/aug/28/three-arrested-doncaster-car-crash-killed-two-men

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Three people, including a teenage boy, have been arrested over a car crash near Doncaster that killed two men and left a third with life-threatening injuries.

Witnesses had reported seeing two males running away from the car on Tuesday, after it smashed into a garden fence, causing a fireball. They said two or three cars had been “racing side by side” moments before the accident.

Video footage taken shortly after the incident in Branton, South Yorkshire, showed smoke billowing out of the Renault Megane.

South Yorkshire police arrested two males, aged 15 and 21, on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving. A 21-year-old-woman has also been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender. All three were from the Doncaster area, police said.

Earlier in the day, officers had said they remained extremely concerned for the two men seen fleeing the scene of the accident, as they were believed to have had very serious injuries.

Insp Steve Askham said: “From the witness accounts we have so far, one of the men had a terrible leg injury, which we believe was caused by the fire. People have told us the men were seriously injured and we believe they need urgent medical attention due to the impact of the crash and also the fire.

“It is going to be a difficult process due to the circumstances of what took place, we’re trying to do that as fast as possible to bring some reassurance and understanding to the relatives who are very, very concerned to find out if their loved ones have been involved in this incident.”

On Thursday night, police said: “Officers are no longer searching for the two unaccounted-for males believed to have been in the car at the time of the collision.”

Investigators believe there were five males travelling in the car, but said formally identifying the men who died would be a lengthy process. A third man remained in a critical condition in hospital on Thursday.

Askham said: “We are still piecing together the events of that day and information from witnesses is crucial to finding answers to what happened.”

One local business owner told the BBC that the moments before the crash had been captured on his CCTV system. “We saw there were two cars, possibly three cars, racing side-by-side,” he said. “The wing mirrors and so-forth were flying off and dust from the edge of the road. After that they sped past and there was an almighty crash and that was out of sight.”

Inquiries are ongoing and police said they will continue to seek information about a second vehicle believed to have been involved with the collision.