IN BRIEF
According to Kent Police, a white Ford Focus hit three cyclists on the morning of Sunday 6 September, on Sole Street in the village of Cobham, south-east of London. Two of them — a man in his sixties and a woman in her fifties — were pronounced dead at the scene; the third was taken to hospital with injuries described as minor. Police say they have since made three arrests: two men in their twenties, suspected of causing death by dangerous driving, and a 19-year-old woman, suspected of assisting an offender. On 8 September, police told Cycling Weekly that two of them had been released on bail, with the third remaining in custody. The victims’ families have been informed. The serious collision investigation unit is appealing for witnesses and asking for dashcam and private CCTV footage that could help it.
A Sunday morning ride on a small country road in Kent. According to Kent Police, it was 7h47 on Sunday 6 September when a white Ford Focus, travelling south-west along Sole Street at Cobham towards the village of Meopham, hit three cyclists. Two of them died at the scene.
Three cyclists hit: what Kent Police say
According to the police statements, emergency services attended the scene and found that two of the three cyclists had died: a man in his sixties and a woman in her fifties, pronounced dead at the scene. The third cyclist was taken to a local hospital with injuries described as minor. Police add that the families of those who died have been informed.
The collision happened on Sole Street, at the junction with Round Street. According to the statement, the road was closed while the collision was investigated.
Three arrests, one of them for assisting
Kent Police say they have made three arrests. Two men in their twenties — aged 20 and 21 according to road.cc, 21 and 22 according to KentOnline and Cycling Weekly — were arrested because they are suspected of having caused a death through dangerous driving; in British law this is the offence of causing death by dangerous driving. A 19-year-old woman has also been taken into custody, suspected of helping an offender (the British offence of assisting an offender).
These offences describe suspicions at this stage of the investigation: all three remain presumed innocent. On 8 September, according to Cycling Weekly, Kent Police said that one of the two men and the young woman had been released on bail pending further enquiries, while the older of the two men remained in custody.
An appeal for witnesses and for footage
The investigation is being led by Kent Police’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit. According to the statement, it is appealing for witnesses; KentOnline adds that it wants to hear from anyone who saw what happened, or who saw the car or the cyclists before the collision.
Police are also asking motorists with dashcam footage, and residents with private CCTV, to upload those recordings to the evidence submission portal shared by Kent and Essex police. That has become a routine investigative step in the UK, where dashcam footage submitted by members of the public regularly weighs in cases brought against drivers.
