Inquest into Ely boy's death's reveals they died of head injuries.

The deaths of the two teenagers sparked riots in Ely in May.

Kyrees Sullivan, 16, and Harvey Evans, 15, died when they fell from their £4,000 Sur-Ron e-bike
Author: Claire BoadPublished 1st Jun 2023

Two teenage boys were killed by head injuries when they crashed an electric bike after allegedly being chased by police, an inquest heard today.

Kyrees Sullivan, 16, and Harvey Evans, 15, died when they fell from their £4,000 Sur-Ron e-bike having been allegedly followed by a police van.

The boys' deaths led to riots on the streets of Ely, Cardiff, as more than 150 people set fire to cars and clashed with police.

Family members say the electric bike was an early birthday present to Harvey before his 16th birthday in July

An inquest opening heard the provisional causes of death for best friends Kyrees and Harvey Evans on May 22.

Usher Lynne Carroll told Pontypridd Coroner's Court the pair were seen riding on one e-bike and "a short time later were both found by a member of the public on the road, having come off the bike".

Pathologist Dr Stephen Leadbeatter found in a post-mortem that the provisional causes of death were blunt head injury for Kyrees and blunt injury to head and trunk for Harvey.

Coroner Patricia Morgan said an inquest was required because there was "reason to suspect the deaths were violent or unnatural in nature".

She added that the hearings would be adjoined because "the circumstances are such that I consider it appropriate for them to be heard together".

Ms Morgan continued: "There is a live investigation ongoing in relation to the circumstances. Therefore, today I will open the inquest but will adjourn to allow a full investigation to take place and be completed. I will require regular updates on the progress of that investigation and I will set a date in due course for the final inquest to be listed."

The court heard both boys were born in Cardiff. Ms Morgan expressed her "deepest condolences" to the families of Kyrees and Harvey.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct launched an investigation into South Wales Police after the force previously denied any pursuit of the teenagers took place.

Several CCTV images later emerged of the boys being followed by a marked police van through the housing estate.

Police say the van turned off onto a different road before the boys died on Snowden Road after taking the e-bike through bollards blocking the way for larger vehicles.

The IOPC said it had conducted house-to-house enquiries and "gathering information from local residents and CCTV footage."

It said there were four parts to the investigation and were looking into: "The nature of the police interaction with the two boys prior to the collision and the appropriateness of the police officers’ decisions and actions.

"Whether at any time the decisions and actions of the officers in the police vehicle constituted a pursuit.

"Whether the interaction between the police officers and the boys was reported appropriately by the officers prior to and following the collision.

"And whether the actions and decisions of South Wales Police over the interaction were in line with legislation, local and national policies and procedures."

IOPC Director David Ford: “Our thoughts and sympathies remain with the family and friends of Kyrees and Harvey, as well as all those affected by the loss of two young lives in such a close-knit community as Ely.

"Our investigators have been conducting enquiries and securing evidence in the immediate vicinity of where the events took place, speaking to local residents, distributing leaflets and gathering as much relevant information as possible.

"I am truly grateful for the co-operation and assistance we have received from people within the local community. We would welcome anyone we haven’t yet spoken to yet, who believes they have footage or witnessed anything relevant between 5.35 pm and 6.10 pm on Monday, to come forward to us."

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