Third person from Southport arrested after serious crash on the Strand in liverpool

Officers investigating a serious collision on The Strand in Liverpool city centre in the early hours of Saturday 7 October have made a third arrest.

A white Audi TT, travelling at speed, came to the attention of patrols at about 1.10am.

Soon after, the vehicle was involved in a collision with a private hire car on The Strand near its junction with Brunswick Street, which was in turn involved in a collision with a pedestrian.

The pedestrian, a man in his 40s, was taken to hospital for treatment for serious injuries where his condition remains critical.

The private hire driver, a man in his 50s, also required treatment for neck injuries.

Two other people, a 53-year-old woman from Southport and a 36-year-old man from Southport, were arrested on Saturday in connection with the investigation and remain in Police custody.

The driver of the Audi made off on foot.  

Police have now arrested a 28-year-old man from the Southport area on suspicion of causing serious injury by dangerous driving, failing to stop/report a road traffic collision and driving whilst unfit through drink or drugs. He has been taken into custody to be interviewed by detectives.

Detective Sergeant Kurt Timpson, Lead Investigating Officer for the Matrix Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: “We continue to make significant progress with this investigation and have made three arrests, but we still want to hear from any witnesses who may have seen the incident or captured any part of it on their dashcam.

“In particular, we are keen to trace the driver of a black hackney taxi which CCTV appears to show a suspect getting into shortly after the crash.  

“The driver of that taxi may not realise the significance of that journey as it was not at the scene of the collision, but I appeal to them to get in touch with us as soon as possible to assist us with our enquiries.  

“The taxi collected the man outside the Crown Court on Lord Street at the junction with Castle Street. The man was white, with fair hair and was wearing dark shorts, with a lighter t-shirt and dark trainers. He also had some sort of bag across his body and appeared to be holding himself as if he was injured.

“I would ask that if you were in the area at the time or have premises nearby, to please review your CCTV or dashcam in case the incident was captured, including any footage of the Audi TT shortly before the incident on The Strand. Every piece of information, no matter how small, could help us with our ongoing enquiries."

The incident has been referred by Merseyside Police to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) as the incident followed recent police contact.

Anyone with information is asked to contact our Matrix Serious Collision Investigation Unit on (0151) 777 5747, email [email protected], or DM @MerPolCC on Twitter/X quoting reference 23000974882.

You can also call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or use their online form at: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/forms/give-information-anonymously.