Death of a member of the public during a police pursuit – Norfolk Constabulary, August 2023

Suffolk Constabulary responded to reports of a stolen car following a burglary. Police officers from Suffolk and Norfolk Constabularies located the car and began to follow it on the motorway, with the National Police Air Service (NPAS) supported the pursuit from the air.

The car eventually left the motorway and a pursuit took place through a field of crops. During this stage of the pursuit, contact was made between the police vehicles and the stolen car in an effort to stop it. A short while later, the stolen car re-joined the road, having sustained some damage, and collided with a car being driven by a female member of the public in the opposite lane. Officers administered first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) until paramedics arrived. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

There were two men in the stolen car, both sustained minor injuries.

There is a mandatory requirement for forces to refer an incident to the IOPC where someone has died or been seriously injured while interacting with the police.

IOPC investigators went to the scene of the collision.

We took witness statements from police officers and police staff. CCTV footage, police officers’ body worn video footage, and vehicle-mounted camera footage was analysed and compared. Diagnostic downloads were taken from the vehicles involved. Recordings of radio and telephone transmissions were obtained, along with copies of the police policies and procedures.

We finalised our investigation in April 2024.

We concluded there was no indication that a person serving with the police committed a criminal offence or behaved in a manner justifying the bringing of disciplinary proceedings.

We waited for all associated proceedings to be finalised before publishing our findings.

The driver of the stolen car was sentenced to prison in March 2024 for causing death by dangerous driving, whilst disqualified, and uninsured, amongst other offences. His passenger also received a prison sentence.

We carefully considered whether there were any learning opportunities arising from the investigation. We make learning recommendations to improve policing and public confidence in the police complaints system and prevent a recurrence of similar incidents.

In this case we identified learning in respect of the National Police Air Service (NPAS) and police pursuits, which we will explore in consultation.