Joe Coughlan
Live reporter

Image source, PA Media

Tributes have been pouring in for two police officers who died in a crash in Middlesbrough early on Saturday which claimed the lives of five others.

PC Tom Clough has been praised for his "warmth, humour and authenticity" by a former colleague, as a fundraising page for the families of the officers reached £500,000.

While PC Matthew Blades has been described as a "role model" for students by the head of Carmel College where he used to teach.

Developments in the police investigation have continued more than 48 hours since the A66 crash, with12 being arrested for a variety of offences ranging from possession of a firearm to participating in the activities of an organised crime group.

Police also shared that four of the five deceased in the Volkswagen Passat, which crashed into the police car, had previous convictions including for assaulting police officers.

TikTok footage analysed by BBC Verify appears to show one of the teenagers who died in the crash being involved in a previous police car chase, with Downing Street also calling on the company and other social media platforms toremove wrong-way driving videos from its platforms.

We are ending our live coverage for now, but you can read more in our news story.

The children's minister has urged young people to think about the consequences of taking what they see online "in the real world".

A social media account thought to have belonged to one of the five people travelling in the Volkswagen shared videos last year appearing to show dangerous driving.

MacAlister says: “Young people should not share this content, and they should report it.”

He adds: "I’d just really encourage young people who are seeing risky and what might be perceived as ‘exciting’ acts to think about the consequences of taking these sorts of actions in the real world."

TikTok says its policies prohibit content that could cause significant physical harm, including dangerous driving.

Earlier today Cleveland Police said that there us no evidence that filming of the events on Friday night and Saturday morning took place for TikTok

Image source, PA Media

• Nine men and three women have been arrested across Teesside on suspicion of offences ranging from possession of a firearm to "participating in the activities of an organised crime group"
• Police said that four of the five people in the Passat, which crashed into the police car on Saturday, had previous convictions including for assaulting police officers
• People have been leaving flowers and tributes at Cleveland Police headquarters in Middlesbrough following the death of the two officers, with a fundraising page for the families of the pair passing £500,000

• Meanwhile, Downing Street said it had urged TikTok and other social media platforms to remove wrong-way driving videos, as Andy Burnham said people who share footage glorifying dangerous driving are “doing something that’s truly reprehensible”

The chairman of Cleveland Police Federation has described the "surreal" moment she found out about the death of the two officers in the A66 crash.

In a message to police federation members, Lauren Somerville says she received a call at 05:44, about two hours after the collision.

"It brought me to my knees," she says.

"I went straight to force headquarters and I don’t think I’ll ever forget walking in there that morning. People looked shell-shocked and frightened. These were my colleagues. This was our force. Two of our officers weren’t coming home."

She tells members the federation has never had to lead members through such a situation and she appealed to them to let her know what support they wanted.

Image source, Cleveland Police Federation

Somerville adds: "We’ve had such an overwhelming response from people offering to help that we’ve asked federation reps from outside Cleveland to come here and support us.

"People hundreds of miles away, who never knew Matt or Tom and may never have met any of you, care about what has happened here. The policing family has wrapped itself around Cleveland."

She says the force will "get through this together" and "keep turning up for one another".

Image source, PA Media

Redcar MP and government minister Anna Turley says the community faces challenges and "issues around crime and safety" but police have been “battling away extremely hard” to keep people safe.

She tells the PA news agency there has been a "massive issue", but says it is important to now bring the community together and "move forward in a safe way".

Asked about her reaction when she heard about the crash, she says: “I was really shocked, really devastated, and I just can’t imagine what the families are going through. It’s unimaginable grief to have parents, husbands, not come home from work.

“And it just reminds us every day about the bravery of our police officers who are out there, protecting us, keeping us safe, putting themselves on the line, running towards danger."

Turley says she is "grateful" to the police and all emergency services who attended the "horrific" scene, adding they are "incredibly professional" and "incredibly committed".

Federica Bedendo
North East and Cumbria

The chief constable of British Transport Police (BTP) has released a tribute to PC Tom Clough, who spent more than three years with the force.

Lucy D’Orsi says PC Clough started serving with BTP at Euston in 2018 before moving up to Darlington and later transferring to Cleveland Police.

"He is remembered as a brilliant police officer who was committed to helping others, and for the kindness and humour he brought to those around him at work," she says in a statement.

She adds the loss of two police officers in the line of duty is "an unspeakable tragedy which affects our entire policing family".

"While Tom went on to continue his service with Cleveland Police, he will always be a part of the BTP family. Our thoughts are with everyone who knew him and PC Blades as they come to terms with this tragic loss."

A prayer vigil is currently being held at St John's Church in South Bank to commemorate the deaths of the seven people killed in Saturday's collision on the A66.

"Anyone who wishes to say prayers or light a candle in memory of those caught up in this tragic event may visit the church at any time and stay for as long as they wish," the church said in a post on Facebook.

The vigil is being held until 20:00 today. Several balloon releases in memory of the young men who died are also taking place this evening.

A growing collection of tributes and flowers has been left outside Cleveland Police headquarter for the two officers, PC Matthew Blades and PC Tom Clough, killed in the crash.

Both officers and members of the public have been paying their respects.

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Shiona McCallum
Senior technology reporter

Dangerous driving has been going on for decades. What's different now is the ability to film it, publish it to a potentially huge audience and have an algorithm recommend it to others.

There is growing concern about videos showing dangerous driving - from speeding to driving the wrong way and fleeing police - being posted online for views and likes. The question is whether that attention is now the incentive for more and more extreme behaviour.

The government has told TikTok and other social media companies to remove content which celebrates dangerous driving and wants platforms to stop their algorithms recommending this sort of material, particularly to young people.

There are regulatory levers too. Under the Online Safety Act, platforms have duties to protect children from harmful content, including content promoting dangerous challenges. Ofcom says platforms must minimise children's exposure to such material.

TikTok told me it is proactively removing content that promotes harmful or risky driving and closely monitors criminal behaviour. But removal does not necessarily end the problem. By the time a video is taken down, it may already have been watched, shared or copied and uploaded elsewhere or circulated through private messages. Removing the original does not necessarily remove the content from the internet.

Further to our update on the 12 arrests made in response to the A66 crash:

• A 26-year-old man has been charged with possession with intent to supply class A and class B drugs, as well as the possession of criminal property
• Another man, 39, and a 47-year-old woman have been released on conditional bail after both being arrested on suspicion of possessing a firearm without a certificate, possession with intent to supply class A and class B drugs, and possession of class C drugs
• An 18-year-old man has been released on unconditional bail after being arrested on suspicion of possessing a firearm without a certificate, possession with intent to supply class A and class B drugs, and possession of class C drugs
• A 61-year-old woman has also been released on conditional bail after being arrested on suspicion of possessing a firearm without a certificate
• A 39-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of threats to kill and has been released on conditional bail

Cleveland Police has just revealed further details after the arrests of 12 people as part of its investigation into what happened before the fatal crash:

• A 24-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of participating in an organised crime group and possession of an offensive weapon and is currently in police custody
• A 19-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of participating in an organised crime group and possession of an offensive weapon and is currently in police custody
• A 30-year-old woman has been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender and is in police custody
• A 35-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of participating in an organised crime group and possession of an offensive weapon and is in police custody
• A 21-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of participating in an organised crime group, possession of an offensive weapon and criminal damage. He has been remanded on recall to prison
• A 20-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of threats to cause criminal damage and public order and is in police custody

We will provide further details of the remaining arrests in our next post

Image source, Cleveland Police

PC Matthew Blades' wife paid tribute to her husband in a statement issued through Cleveland Police on Sunday.

"No words will ever feel like the right words to honour our Matt - my beloved husband, my best friend, and the most devoted father to our two young boys," the statement says.

She describes him as "an adored son and brother, a perfect son-in-law, and the most fun uncle" who was "loved beyond words".

"He gave his life in the line of duty, protecting and serving others with courage, dedication and selflessness," she adds.

She expresses "our deepest gratitude and heartfelt thanks" to the police and emergency services.

The statement is signed off: "Forever loved. Forever missed. Forever our superhero."

Ruth Green
BBC News

Gill Elgie, who worked for Cleveland Police for 36 years before retiring a few years ago, has been to the memorial garden at the force HQ.to lay flowers in tribute to the officers who died.

“The officers that I joined with and worked with, these are now their sons and that hits harder," she tells the BBC. "It’s just awful.

"This is what the police family does, whenever any of ours are injured or anything. It’s just heartbreaking. Two young lads with young families. I just have no words. It’s devastating.”

Pamela Bilalova
North East and Cumbria

Four of the five people in the Passat, which crashed into the police car on Saturday had previous convictions, including for assaulting police officers, Cleveland Police has revealed.

Cole Worthy, 17, had admitted offences including assault of a police officer, using abusive language to cause harassment, alarm and distress, and driving without a licence and insurance.

Makai Saddington, 18, had also been convicted of assaulting police officers, had pleaded guilty to racially aggravated harassment, and was caught with a knife and a class C drug.

Seventeen-year-old Theo Rae's offences included 12 for shoplifting, thefts from vehicles, assaulting a police officer and aggravated vehicle taking.

Jakub Matusiak, 23, had pleaded guilty to using a vehicle without insurance and driving without a licence.

Michael Robert Cahill, 23, had no convictions.

A fundraising page set up for the families of PC Matthew Blades and PC Tom Clough, who died in the A66 crash on Saturday, has reached £500,000.

The appeal was set up by the Cleveland Police Federation on Sunday.

Ruth Green
BBC News

People are coming down to the memorial garden at Cleveland Police headquarters in Middlesbrough to leave flowers and tributes.

One message reads: "Heartfelt condolences to the families, friends and colleagues of PC Matt Blades and PC Tom Clough."

A police officer was pictured placing two bouquets of flowers at the memorial earlier this morning.

Stuart Whincup
North East and Cumbria

The head of Carmel College, where PC Matthew Blades used to teach, has said he was a "role model" for students.

He was an English teacher at the Darlington school before becoming a police officer.

School principal Melanie Kane said PC Blades had been "passionate" about joining the police and serving the community.

"We were devastated that he left and we're just so devastated that such a great guy has lost his life in the way that he has," she said.

"I can see why he was such a great police officer, because he had this wonderful way with people."

Fiona Trott
North of England correspondent, reporting from Teesside

Cleveland Police and Crime Commissioner Matt Storey has urged members of the community to offer a show of support for local officers.

“If you can put your arm around an officer today and say 'thank you, hope you’re ok', that would go down well," he said. "Because we all live here and all need to come together in solidarity."

Videos featuring young men driving dangerously regularly shared on TikTokpublished at 14:52 BST

14:52 BST

By Shayan Sardarizadeh and Benedict Garman

BBC Verify has been looking at the spread of videos on platforms like TikTok which show young men filming themselves driving dangerously.

As we reported earlier, a TikTok profile which appears to belong to one of the people killed in the A66 crash, Makai Saddington, featured a number of this kind of video.

By searching for similar hashtags, reading the comments and looking at followers, we have been able to find dozens of similar videos on TikTok. These show young men in cars or on motorbikes driving off road, speeding and, in some cases, filming themselves while being followed by a police vehicle.

Some of the videos have been on the platform for at least a year. We have seen some users who post these clips apparently attempting to bypass TikTok’s moderation by falsely labelling their genuine footage as AI-generated or fake.

In at least one case, we saw a warning note apparently added by TikTok’s moderation service to a video showing a young man doing a wheelie on a motorbike at more than 110mph. The note reads: “Participating in this activity could result in you or others getting hurt.”

The BBC has approached TikTok for comment.

Pamela Bilalova
North East and Cumbria

Redcar and Cleveland Council has opened a book of condolence for those killed in the A66 crash.

Redcar Labour MP Anna Turley says it will give the community a place to pay their respects and "stand with every family, friend and loved one facing the most unimaginable loss".

The book is available at the council's offices on Ridley Street in Redcar.

Floral tributes can also be left at the Memorial Garden at Cleveland Police headquarters in Hemlington or any Cleveland Police station, the council says.