Two men charged with murder after boy, four, killed in pick-up truck crash
Peter Maughan was killed in the crash on New Barn Road, Dartford, which has also left his dad, 24, fighting for his life.
His one-year-old baby sister was also taken to hospital with minor injuries.
Police were called to the scene around 9.30pm on June 1, and all three victims, who were from the same vehicle, were taken to hospital.
Patrick Maughan, 53, and Owen Maughan, 27, have been charged with murder.
Tributes have poured in for Peter, who was known as Peter Rabbit, saying his death was 'the saddest thing they heard'.
One friend wrote: 'Rest in peace Peter Rabbit please everyone keep them in your prayers it's a cruel world.' More Trending
Kent Police said: 'Three people from the same vehicle were taken to hospital. A four year old boy died at the hospital and a 24 year old man remains in hospital in a critical condition. A one year old girl received minor injuries.
'On Monday 2 June 2025, officers arrested two men in connection with the incident, a 27 year old from Darenth and a 53 year old from Swanley.
'They remain in custody while enquiries continue to establish the circumstances surrounding the collision.
'Detectives would also like to hear from anyone who may have witnessed the collision involving two grey Ford Rangers.'
Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. Or you can submit your videos and pictures here.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get Metro.co.uk articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here.
MORE: Boy, three, starved to death by parents 'became invisible to child services'
MORE: What Madeleine McCann's twin siblings are doing now after 'living in her shadow'
MORE: Three missing sisters found dead after going to visit dad as manhunt for him is underway
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Press and Journal
6 hours ago
- Press and Journal
Charity could step in to help Aberdeen children after school counselling service 'snatched away'
A national charity could help to rescue Aberdeen's school counselling service after the existing provider suddenly went bust, leaving hundreds of pupils without the vital sessions. The young people, some of them particularly vulnerable, were not given any notice before Mental Health Aberdeen (MHA) shut down with immediate effect on July 24, while they were on their summer holidays. It meant they had no time to prepare for losing the support or to say goodbye to their trusted counsellors with whom they had built trust and understanding. The Press and Journal has learned that the national charity Scottish Action for Mental Health (SAMH) is in talks to take over some of MHA's contracted responsibilities. The chief executive of SAMH, Billy Watson, said that he was deeply saddened at MHA's demise, and his thoughts were with everyone affected. 'At SAMH, we support many people with mental health problems in the North East of Scotland,' Mr Watson said, 'and we have been involved in a series of early discussions with a number of key stakeholders, including Aberdeen City Council, to see what might be helpful and possible in this difficult situation.' Aberdeen City Council plans to announce an MHA post-collapse recovery plan within the coming days, after holding talks with potential alternative providers. A local authority spokeswoman confirmed: 'We have been liaising with a number of partners to see how best to address the situation and are on track to share details before the end of this week.' Previously, Aberdeen Counselling and Information Services (ACIS) Youth, one of six now-defunct projects run by MHA, offered around 13,000 appointments annually. ACIS Youth counsellors worked in every Aberdeen secondary school. They also had coverage across all primaries. Children and young people up to 18 had access to weekly one-to-one talking therapy, with as many as 12 free sessions offered. – Former MHA school counsellor An ex-MHA school counsellor, who asked not to be named, said she felt 'very sad' about her former employer's handling of the financially unstable charity's closure. 'I have great concern for the young people, who through no fault of their own, lost a vital service without any warning and were expected to find out about it in a statement posted on Facebook – not from their counsellors,' the woman said. 'Being told you've suddenly had that safe place to talk with someone you trust with your most personal thoughts and feelings snatched away is frightening. 'It may have made them feel scared and alone, after working so hard to build a relationship of trust with the counsellors whom they would look forward to seeing at their next counselling session.' The governance and financial management of MHA are currently under investigation by the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR). We previously reported that a watchdog official had confirmed the regulator was made aware of 'a number of concerns' that included allegations of 'inappropriate' spending. After assessing the information complainers had shared with them, officials escalated the matter by opening an ongoing inquiry. Earlier, we reported that up to four months of pension deductions and employer contributions were missing from former MHA workers' retirement schemes, contradicting information on their payslips.
Belfast Telegraph
6 hours ago
- Belfast Telegraph
‘Poison bait' to be used at popular Co Down beach after rodents ‘infest' shores
Residents of Millisle recently came together to clear litter and seaweed from their local beach, following a community cleanup organised earlier this month by Deborah Mann. But residents said beach continued to be plagued by large rats. Ards and North Down Borough Council has now confirmed plans to use poison and target areas where rodent activity is believed to be high. In a statement on social media, the council said: 'Following growth in the rodent population at Millisle Beach, a pest control programme will begin on Thursday 21 August and run for 2-3 weeks. "Poison bait will be used on the site to target known burrows. 'Signage will be in place to advise beach users and Council Officers will be visiting the site over the coming days to engage with beach users and give advice.' Visitors are advised to keep pets on a leash, supervise children at all times, take any food waste away and not feed the birds. The council advised contacting the Emergency Department – or a vet for pets – if accidental poisoning occurs. Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph earlier this month, Deborah explained how members of the local community worked 'tirelessly' to clean up the town. A resident of Millisle for over 40 years, Deborah was prompted by her husband Gary to post a notice on Facebook to organise a village beach clean. Efforts to tidy the beach then moved on to improving the general surroundings, with John McLean (80) taking to weeding the surrounding area. However, despite their good intentions to clean up the beach, they initially received pushback from the council. Grievances were initially raised due to environmental issues and wildlife concerns 'The beach is now infested with rats. Council kept saying it is not allowed to be touched because it is an environmental issue,' she said. 'About a week later a couple of the guys decided to get together and de-weed the whole Main Street, it was also cleared of rubbish. They tirelessly worked for hours. 'A few days after that, a few professional painters gave up their time and painted a couple of derelict buildings.' Deborah added: 'I then started a GoFundMe, within two days it went from a £400 target to £3,400. Every single penny is going towards the cleaning and restoration efforts. 'The council has actually given us the bags now to help clean up.'
Metro
6 hours ago
- Metro
'Mutant' deer covered in fleshy bubbles spotted in the US
This year has not been too kind to animals in the US. Americans have spotted so-called 'Frankenstein' rabbits oozing sluglike tentacles from their faces and 'zombie' squirrels covered in sores in their back yards in recent months. Now, social media users in New York, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, among others, say they're seeing deer covered in fleshy bubbles. 'A white-tailed deer in Pennsylvania. But what is the growth? Is it a mole? A boil? An injury?' asked one Reddit user earlier this month. Clay Moden, a radio show host at WYRK in Buffalo, uploaded trail camera footage of a deer with 'some sort of growth on it' in early August. Don't go sprinting to your bunker out of fear we've got a Last of Us fungal plague on our hands, though. The deer are infected with deer cutaneous fibroma, a mostly benign infection that can't spread to other species, including humans. Better known as deer warts, this strain of fibroma is mainly found in young white-tailed deer and mule deer. It can cause up to two dozen hairless tumours to appear on the animal's body. The warts, sometimes as small as a pea to as large as a football, pop up on a deer's head, neck and forelegs. These lumps don't cause the deer any pain, but can hinder their ability to walk, eat or see. Deer generally overcome the disease on their own within a few months, as the growths slowly dry up and fall off. One user on X noted last Thursday: '…This deer in my yard. [The warts] got worse, then three months later, they were gone.' There's no known cure or treatment and it's recommended impacted deer be left alone. But if a deer is particularly struggling because of the warty lesions, you should call your local wildlife agency. Fibroma is transmitted through biting insects, such as mosquitoes, so deer are more likely to contract it in the summer and autumn, when the bugs are most active. Deer can also be sickened with fibroma by directly contacting a surface where the virus is wriggling on, or by rubbing against an infected deer. The creatures often trot along the same trails or nibble from the same feeding spots, making transmission possible. 'Fibromas are more commonly seen in male deer, suggesting that fighting may play a role in transmission of the virus,' according to the Cornell Wildlife Health Lab. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife advises that hunters who harvest an infected deer skin the animal. The infection caused a scare in 2019, when viral Facebook posts blamed the bulbous deer on a brand of weedkiller, which is not the case. Many mammals have their own version of deer warts, called papillomas. Papillomaviruses are behind the recent cases of cottontail rabbits covered in black spikes, which are also spread by mosquitoes and ticks. This includes humans, too – human papillomavirus (HPV), a common sexually transmitted infection, can cause genital warts. Dr Omer Awan of the University of Maryland School of Medicine told MailOnline that we might be seeing more 'gross' pictures of animals in the future for two reasons. More Trending As humans continue to burn fossil fuels, spewing planet-warming pollution into the air, climate change will make the Earth warmer, helping blood-sucking critters like mosquitoes to thrive. But another reason for any increases in sightings might not seem as obvious. 'People are starting to talk about it more, they're starting to document it more on social media,' Dr Awan said. 'Hence, there's been a lot more discussion about this.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Toxic vapor kills fifth person in New York City MORE: Map shows Hurricane Erin along US East Coast threatening to isolate barrier islands MORE: Food influencers narrowly escape death after car crashes into restaurant table mid-review
