Wrong-way M40 crash car had been in a collision five days earlier, police say
A car which was driven into oncoming traffic on the M40 leaving three people dead had been involved in a crash days earlier, police have revealed.
The Subaru Forester pulled a caravan the wrong way along the northbound carriageway of the motorway in south Oxfordshire, hitting a Ford Mondeo and a Ford Focus.
The crash killed the Subaru driver and passenger, both in their 80s, and the Mondeo driver, who has been named as 32-year-old Stuart Richards.
Thames Valley Police said the car had been involved in a “damage-only” collision five days before Monday afternoon's crash.
Update in relation to M40 fatal collision
•The driver of the Ford Mondeo who died has been formally identified as Stuart Richards, aged 32, from Stockport.
•TVP has made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
Full details https://t.co/TTWfJUEAI6 pic.twitter.com/CGS9GdWgs2— Thames Valley Police (@ThamesVP) October 18, 2018
It added that it had referred itself to the police watchdog.
The force said: “Thames Valley Police has made a mandatory referral to the IOPC in relation to the fatal collision, due to previous police contact.
“On October 10 this year in High Wycombe, a report of a damage-only road traffic collision involving the Subaru Forester was made to the force.
“The IOPC will now make a decision as to whether they will carry out an investigation.”
