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Police hunt driver who aimed car at London cyclists (+ video)

Incident happened in Stockwell last week and footage has since gone viral

Police in London have appealed for help in tracking down a driver who was last week filmed driving aggressively at bike riders on Cycle Superhighway 7 in between Clapham and Stockwell.

We reported on the incident last Thursday, with video shot by two of the cyclists involved, one of whom, Dave Clifton, was almost hit by the driver who swerved at him as he drove past at speed.

> Video: Motorist drives recklessly at London cyclists

The incident happened at around 8am on the morning of Wednesday 1 August, with the start of Mr Clifton’s video showing the driver yelling at him and other cyclists close near Clapham North Underground Station.

After swerving at Mr Clifton as the pair headed towards Stockwell, the motorist turned into a side road, causing a cyclist to come off his bike.

He then started driving aggressively at other cyclists who had gathered there before reversing as police arrived at the scene.

Detective Constable James Preston of the Metropolitan Police said: "We are aware of footage of this incident is circulating on social media, and we want to reassure the public that it is being fully investigated.

"Luckily no one was seriously injured or even killed by this reckless driver. We are still trying to trace him and urge anyone who recognises him to contact the police as soon as possible. The sooner you call us, the sooner we can take this dangerous driver off the road.

"We’d also like to hear from anyone who witnessed this first-hand to call us as well. Anything you may be able to remember and tell us could really help this investigation."

Anyone who has information is requested to call police on 101 and quote CAD 1581/1Aug or alternatively contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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28 comments

Avatar
srchar | 5 years ago
1 like

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-45180120

BBC wrote:

Barry Williams, a BBC member of staff based at Millbank, said: "I heard lots of screams and turned round."

"The car went onto the wrong side of the road to where cyclists were waiting at lights and ploughed into them."

Could this be the UK's first anti-cycling terrorist incident? The media and politicians have certainly fostered an environment where someone deranged enough to contemplate driving their car at a group of people riding bicycles may feel justified in their actions.

Avatar
mdavidford | 5 years ago
0 likes

"Luckily no one was seriously injured or even killed by this reckless driver."

Reckless? Really? He was driving like that because he just wasn't paying attention?

Avatar
vonhelmet | 5 years ago
5 likes

The Express is decorative bog roll, much like the mail. If they ran a story about my having a hole in my arse I’d be sceptical.

Avatar
don simon fbpe replied to vonhelmet | 5 years ago
3 likes

vonhelmet wrote:

The Express is decorative bog roll, much like the mail. If they ran a story about my having a hole in my arse I’d be sceptical.

You're not the problem, it's the muppets who buy it, get it read to them and then believe it as gospel.

Avatar
HowardR replied to vonhelmet | 5 years ago
8 likes

vonhelmet wrote:

The Express is decorative bog roll, much like the mail. If they ran a story about my having a hole in my arse I’d be sceptical.

I think that would likely run with:

"DOES THE HOLE IN YOUR ARSE CAUSE CANCER?"

or

"IMMIGRANTS COME IN THE HOLE IN YOUR ARSE"

or

"DID DIANA DIE IN THE HOLE IN YOUR ARSE"

Avatar
John Smith replied to vonhelmet | 5 years ago
0 likes

vonhelmet wrote:

The Express is decorative bog roll, much like the mail. If they ran a story about my having a hole in my arse I’d be sceptical.

 

Your being unfair. Bog roll is far more useful, and the content is generally better written.

 

However, people do still read it and it does have an impact. The Express that’s is...

Avatar
John Smith | 5 years ago
6 likes

Car drives at cyclists.

Police hunt driver.

Express article “Who was in the wrong? London motorist mounts pavement during FURIOUS row with cyclist”

 

and people still try and claim cyclists are not being targeted and the bias is all in the mind of cyclists.

Avatar
burtthebike replied to John Smith | 5 years ago
2 likes

John Smith wrote:

Car drives at cyclists.

Police hunt driver.

Express article “Who was in the wrong? London motorist mounts pavement during FURIOUS row with cyclist”

and people still try and claim cyclists are not being targeted and the bias is all in the mind of cyclists.

JHC, I thought that was a spoof, but it is true.  https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/998116/London-news-motorist-drives-int...

Utterly incredible, even for that fetid pustule on society's ass, the Express.

Edit; don't read the comments.  Really, really don't read them.  I'm not joking, don't.

Avatar
brooksby replied to burtthebike | 5 years ago
0 likes

burtthebike wrote:

John Smith wrote:

Car drives at cyclists.

Police hunt driver.

Express article “Who was in the wrong? London motorist mounts pavement during FURIOUS row with cyclist”

and people still try and claim cyclists are not being targeted and the bias is all in the mind of cyclists.

JHC, I thought that was a spoof, but it is true.  https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/998116/London-news-motorist-drives-int...

Utterly incredible, even for that fetid pustule on society's ass, the Express.

Edit; don't read the comments.  Really, really don't read them.  I'm not joking, don't.

I don't think its just the Express.  Most of the papers that picked the story up seem to have described it along the lines of how it all started when a motorist got into a confrontation with cyclists, as if Somehow it was the cyclists' fault.

Avatar
ChrisB200SX replied to burtthebike | 5 years ago
0 likes

burtthebike wrote:

John Smith wrote:

Car drives at cyclists.

Police hunt driver.

Express article “Who was in the wrong? London motorist mounts pavement during FURIOUS row with cyclist”

and people still try and claim cyclists are not being targeted and the bias is all in the mind of cyclists.

JHC, I thought that was a spoof, but it is true.  https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/998116/London-news-motorist-drives-int...

Utterly incredible, even for that fetid pustule on society's ass, the Express.

Edit; don't read the comments.  Really, really don't read them.  I'm not joking, don't.

Disgusting, isn't it, seems to have actually been a row between the dangerous driver and the driver behind him.
At no point did I see a row between driver and cyclists... not until he was already trying to run them over anyway.

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Zjtm231 | 5 years ago
0 likes

Standard commute along the A3 into London

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atgni | 5 years ago
0 likes

Surely the footage going viral has compromised any chance of a fair trial.

Avatar
Awavey replied to atgni | 5 years ago
2 likes
atgni wrote:

Surely the footage going viral has compromised any chance of a fair trial.

This was mentioned with the footage last week, how does it affect it at all ? Keeping in mind there's a trial going on now, where cctv footage was published in national newspapers and shown on national tv.

Avatar
atgni replied to Awavey | 5 years ago
0 likes
Awavey wrote:
atgni wrote:

Surely the footage going viral has compromised any chance of a fair trial.

This was mentioned with the footage last week, how does it affect it at all ? Keeping in mind there's a trial going on now, where cctv footage was published in national newspapers and shown on national tv.

I don't see it's relevant at all but the police keep saying you can't post it before they've seen/ignored it.

Avatar
brooksby | 5 years ago
0 likes

Its the only way to be sure...

http://www.stingerspike.com/

Avatar
don simon fbpe replied to brooksby | 5 years ago
1 like

brooksby wrote:

Its the only way to be sure...

http://www.stingerspike.com/

I fear it might puncture the drinks bladder and/or rip the rucksack as I try to get it out. Anyway, I already carry a shitload of crap on the commute.

Avatar
jlebrech | 5 years ago
0 likes

shame it's not like GTA: WASTED

Avatar
Bill H | 5 years ago
2 likes

The owner of the vehicle can claim that someone else was driving, yet decline to name who, on grounds of avoiding incriminating themselves.

Yes, it's bollocks, you know it, I know it, the police know it, the magistrates know it, but that's the law and our beloved MP's are in no mood to correct it. 

Avatar
Fishpastesarnie replied to Bill H | 5 years ago
2 likes

Bill H wrote:

The owner of the vehicle can claim that someone else was driving, yet decline to name who, on grounds of avoiding incriminating themselves.

Yes, it's bollocks, you know it, I know it, the police know it, the magistrates know it, but that's the law and our beloved MP's are in no mood to correct it. 

 

Yep, but in failing to name them they are commiting an offence in itself and are liable to be prosecuted anyway. Albeit a lesser offence I suspect.

The police were utterly useless at the scene and practically let the guy drive away. After all they needed to protect him from those nasty vicious cyclists.

Avatar
John Smith replied to Fishpastesarnie | 5 years ago
2 likes

Fishpastesarnie wrote:

Bill H wrote:

The owner of the vehicle can claim that someone else was driving, yet decline to name who, on grounds of avoiding incriminating themselves.

Yes, it's bollocks, you know it, I know it, the police know it, the magistrates know it, but that's the law and our beloved MP's are in no mood to correct it. 

 

 

 

Yep, but in failing to name them they are commiting an offence in itself and are liable to be prosecuted anyway. Albeit a lesser offence I suspect.

The police were utterly useless at the scene and practically let the guy drive away. After all they needed to protect him from those nasty vicious cyclists.

 

We don’t know if the police driver had the training to follow the driver. If he did he may have decided that there was to much of a risk that the driver would do something stupid on busy, narrow roads during rush hour, or putting the immediate need to check if anyone had been hit and injured above following the car. Real life policing isn’t like the Sweeny.

Avatar
webster replied to John Smith | 5 years ago
0 likes

John Smith wrote:

Fishpastesarnie wrote:

Bill H wrote:

The owner of the vehicle can claim that someone else was driving, yet decline to name who, on grounds of avoiding incriminating themselves.

Yes, it's bollocks, you know it, I know it, the police know it, the magistrates know it, but that's the law and our beloved MP's are in no mood to correct it. 

 

 

 

Yep, but in failing to name them they are commiting an offence in itself and are liable to be prosecuted anyway. Albeit a lesser offence I suspect.

The police were utterly useless at the scene and practically let the guy drive away. After all they needed to protect him from those nasty vicious cyclists.

 

We don’t know if the police driver had the training to follow the driver. If he did he may have decided that there was to much of a risk that the driver would do something stupid on busy, narrow roads during rush hour, or putting the immediate need to check if anyone had been hit and injured above following the car. Real life policing isn’t like the Sweeny.

 

If he's driving an unmarked car he has had the training.

I don't understand it either. It looks very much like he just wanted to make it look like he was doing something when in actual fact he did nothing at all. The driver is free to kill anyone he likes.

Avatar
John Smith replied to webster | 5 years ago
1 like

webster wrote:

John Smith wrote:

Fishpastesarnie wrote:

Bill H wrote:

The owner of the vehicle can claim that someone else was driving, yet decline to name who, on grounds of avoiding incriminating themselves.

Yes, it's bollocks, you know it, I know it, the police know it, the magistrates know it, but that's the law and our beloved MP's are in no mood to correct it. 

 

 

 

Yep, but in failing to name them they are commiting an offence in itself and are liable to be prosecuted anyway. Albeit a lesser offence I suspect.

The police were utterly useless at the scene and practically let the guy drive away. After all they needed to protect him from those nasty vicious cyclists.

 

We don’t know if the police driver had the training to follow the driver. If he did he may have decided that there was to much of a risk that the driver would do something stupid on busy, narrow roads during rush hour, or putting the immediate need to check if anyone had been hit and injured above following the car. Real life policing isn’t like the Sweeny.

 

If he's driving an unmarked car he has had the training.

I don't understand it either. It looks very much like he just wanted to make it look like he was doing something when in actual fact he did nothing at all. The driver is free to kill anyone he likes.

 

Not necessarily. You don't have to be pursuit trained and authorised to drive an unmarked car. You don't even need anything more than a standard driving licence. Even cilvilian staff can drive them. They cannot use the lights and sirense, but that is an entirely separate matter (Forces may have their own rules that go above and beyond the basic requirments) They are used for many other things, and this appears to be a low powered response car. Also, the officers are BTP, not Met, who genaraly have a principle not to pursue, or at least did a few years ago.

 

I'm guessing the driver thought the car was going to pull up but stopped when he realised he was not going to.

Avatar
vonhelmet replied to Fishpastesarnie | 5 years ago
5 likes

Fishpastesarnie wrote:

The police were utterly useless at the scene and practically let the guy drive away. After all they needed to protect him from those nasty vicious cyclists.

I’m sure they had good reason for not wanting to kick off a high speed pursuit in a built up area during rush hour.

I’m buggered if I know what, but there must have been a reason they thought that was a bad idea.

Avatar
Bowks | 5 years ago
10 likes

I'm confused as to why the police, who were on the scene immediately, failed to catch and arrest this scrote.

 

Avatar
cdamian replied to Bowks | 5 years ago
6 likes

Bowks wrote:

I'm confused as to why the police, who were on the scene immediately, failed to catch and arrest this scrote.

And how difficult can it be with having the number plate and good video of the driver?

Avatar
dmack replied to cdamian | 5 years ago
4 likes

cdamian wrote:

Bowks wrote:

I'm confused as to why the police, who were on the scene immediately, failed to catch and arrest this scrote.

And how difficult can it be with having the number plate and good video of the driver?

Coverage elsewhere said that the driver announced it was "a stolen car".  So it may be harder to track him down than simply contacting the registeration holder.

Avatar
whobiggs replied to Bowks | 5 years ago
0 likes

Bowks wrote:

I'm confused as to why the police, who were on the scene immediately, failed to catch and arrest this scrote.

 

 

Perhaps because they didn't think to go after him in their car? 

Avatar
fukawitribe replied to whobiggs | 5 years ago
0 likes

whobiggs wrote:

Bowks wrote:

I'm confused as to why the police, who were on the scene immediately, failed to catch and arrest this scrote.

 

 

Perhaps because they didn't think to go after him in their car? 

They started to and stopped, as far as we can see. The reasons why that was has been speculated about here and elsewhere but they clearly did initially "think to go after him in their car".

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