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Aunt of teenager killed in Cardiff bike crash accuses police of causing boys’ death

The aunt of one of the teenage boys who died in a crash while riding an electric bike in Cardiff has accused South Wales Police of causing their deaths.

Kyrees Sullivan, 16, and Harvey Evans, 15, died on Monday night, shortly after they were captured on CCTV being followed by a police van.

Speaking to the BBC after a vigil for the pair on Friday evening, Harvey’s aunt Hayley Murphy said: “They were two children who were chased to their death by South Wales Police”.

Ms Murphy said Harvey had been giving his best friend a lift home on the bike, which had been an early 16th birthday present, when they encountered police.

She said: “Harvey had only just had this bike and didn’t want to lose it. Ms Murphy further alleged: “He turned back and the police gave chase.”

On the night of the crash, which happened just after 6pm, she said she had waited at the police barrier with her sister, Harvey’s mother, for more than two hours “begging them to tell us if they were alive or dead, and they wouldn’t tell us nothing”.

Ms Murphy also criticised the police’s allegedly long delay in informing the family that Harvey was dead.

She said police officers “came to the house around four hours after it happened … and they said: ‘there have been two fatalities but we cannot confirm who they are’.

“We knew it was Harvey, but we didn’t get told until the family liaison officer came at around two o’clock the following day.

“How can you treat a family of a young boy like that?”

Ms Murphy further alleged police had arrested her nephew 30 times over the past two years but never charged him.

In two separate instances, she claimed police had visited Harvey’s home over matters he could not have had anything to do with.

On the first occasion, the family had doorbell video footage showing he was home at the time; the second time he was on holiday so “wasn’t even in the country”, she added.

The family claimed they had no support for 17 hours, blaming this on the riots which broke out in Ely after the boys’ deaths.

The disorder on Monday night erupted after CCTV footage emerged of a marked South Wales Police van following the teenagers as they rode the Sur-Ron electric bike.

Undated family handout photo issued by South Wales Police of Harvey Evans, 15, (right) who died in a road traffic collision with his best friend Kyrees Sullivan, 16, (not pictured) in Ely, Cardiff on Monday. The families of the teenagers have both paid tribute to them. Issue date: Wednesday May 24, 2023. PA Photo. See PA story POLICE Ely. Photo credit should read: Family Handout/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Harvey Evans, far right (Photo: Family Handout/PA Wire)

Nine people were arrested and 15 police officers were injured in the riots.

The claims of a pursuit were denied by Alun Michael, the Police and Crime Commissioner for South Wales, but the force has since confirmed a van was following Kyrees and Harvey.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has launched an investigation into the circumstances.

On Friday, around a thousand people attended a vigil for Harvey and Kyrees, releasing balloons and flares in memory of the boys.

The mothers of the teenagers reportedly asked for there to be no people on Sur-Ron bikes at the vigil. It is also understood the families requested that no police were present.

Undated family handout photo issued by South Wales Police of Kyrees Sullivan, 16, who died in a road traffic collision with his best friend Harvey Evans, 15 (not pictured) in Ely, Cardiff on Monday. The families of the teenagers have both paid tribute to them. Issue date: Wednesday May 24, 2023. PA Photo. See PA story POLICE Ely. Photo credit should read: Family Handout/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Kyrees Sullivan (Photo: Family Handout/PA Wire)

The bike the boys were riding when the crash occurred looks similar to the Sur-Ron electric motorcycle moped, which costs around £4,495 and has a top speed of 30mph although this can be modified for off-road use.

According to The Sunday Times, “the model and whether the rider had the correct licence for on-road riding forms part of a South Wales Police investigation”.

Harvey’s great-uncle, John O’Driscoll, told the BBC: “They were just young boys. Everyone rides bikes and scooters around here. Yes, we find them annoying, but that’s just what they do. But as soon as those coppers saw they had no helmets they should’ve stopped.”

South Wales Police told i they “cannot comment any further” due to the ongoing investigation by the force and the IOPC.

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