Police are facing serious questions and community anger after taking almost 24 hours to admit potential involvement in the pursuit of two teenagers, whose deaths sparked riots in Cardiff.
Kyrees Sullivan, 16, and Harvey Evans, 15, were killed in the Ely area of the city just after 6pm on Monday, minutes after CCTV footage appeared to show them being followed by a police van as they rode together on an e-bike.
The incident provoked a night of violent disorder that left 15 police officers wounded. Rioters claimed they had gathered to pay respect to the dead boys before clashes broke out with officers from South Wales police.
On Tuesday morning, the local police and crime commissioner blamed the unrest on false “rumours” on social media about police involvement in the boys’ deaths. But on Tuesday afternoon, CCTV footage, time-stamped at 5.59pm on Monday, emerged showing a police van following an e-bike on Frank Road, about half a mile from Snowden Road where the boys crashed less than four minutes later.
At a press conference after the emergence of the video clip, Ch Supt Martyn Stone of South Wales police announced that the force had referred itself to the police watchdog over the incident.
He said: “We’ve received CCTV footage that shows a police vehicle following a bike just prior to 6pm. South Wales police has also made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct to ensure the matter receives independent scrutiny.”
Stone confirmed that a number of arrests had been made and that more would follow. The IOPC said it would send investigators to assess whether to launch an investigation.
Tension built again in the Snowden Road area of Ely after the press conference. A large crowd gathered around a shrine of flowers, balloons and images of the dead teenagers, and at one point stopped cars driving down the street.
A friend of the pair, who asked not to be named, said: “The police have been lying since this happened. They’ve only admitted they were involved in a chase because the footage came out.”
People who live on the road moved cars away and some sent children to stay with relatives. “This place has lost confidence in the police,” said one resident, Tom. “They haven’t been honest with us and we’re worried it’s all going to go off again tonight.”
On Tuesday morning, the South Wales police and crime commissioner, Alun Michael, had claimed the riots were sparked by false rumours. It was not until Stone’s press conference after 5pm that police involvement was confirmed.
But Stone clarified that there were no police vehicles on Snowden Road when the fatal e-bike crash occurred. He said: “The investigation has involved the studying of CCTV and tracking data from the police vehicle. At this stage, we did not believe any other vehicles were involved.”
Stone added: “I’d like to acknowledge the impact last night’s disorder had on local residents, who were understandably very frightened. They have our assurances we will be doing our best to arrest all of those responsible.”
Police officers faced hours of “large-scale disorder” around Snowden Road, with rioters throwing missiles including fireworks at them. Cars were set on fire as trouble flared through the night, involving scores of masked youths.
Luke, 29, began livestreaming footage of clashes on Stanway Road well before dusk on Monday evening. Explaining the context of the clashes to thousands of viewers watching the riot unfold, he said: “They chased two young lads on a electric bike and they sadly passed away and now they are trying to attack the rest of the people who tried to show respect for the lads that died. This is how we are treated in Ely.”
Other scenes being streamed on YouTube showed young people throwing fireworks and other missiles at a line of police officers with riot shields who were blocking one end of the street. A fire was burning and a helicopter could be heard hovering overhead. Shortly before midnight, a car was set on fire, while a second vehicle was overturned and set ablaze.
Shortly before 3am, rioters moved down Highmead Road in Ely, followed by police who were trying to disperse them. Officers, some of them on horseback, were seen outside Ely police station in the early hours of Tuesday after fears that it might be targeted.
One person was attacked because rioters believed they were an undercover officer, according to one of the senior police at the scene.
Bridy Bool, a close friend of the family of one of the boys who was killed, said they still had little information about what happened to the teenagers. “They don’t know what happened,” she said. “They’re in pieces.”
She said Kyrees Sullivan and Harvey Evans were best friends. “They loved football and motorbikes. They did everything together,” she said.
Bool said the pair had been on a Sur-Ron electric motorcycle together and had not been wearing helmets. She claimed the families were upset that the boys’ bodies had been left on the road for several hours while the riot took place.
Rodney Berman, leader of the Liberal Democrats on Cardiff council, said: “The emergence of this CCTV footage raises serious questions over the version of events provided by South Wales police and police and crime commissioner Alun Michael and apparent contradictions within it.
“Given there is concern over the timeline provided of events leading up to the crash, which appears to contradict local reports and video evidence, this incident needs to face an immediate, impartial investigation.
“I would also like to appeal to communities across Cardiff to remain calm and to allow appropriate actors to investigate. The last thing we need is for any innocent people to be caught up in the type of violence we saw last night.”
Speaking in the Senedd, Jane Hutt, the minister for social justice in Wales, said: “There must now be a full investigation to understand how this tragic incident led to the violence that followed, to ensure peace is restored and that this never happens again.”
