Latest news with #Section59
South Wales Argus
02-05-2025
- South Wales Argus
WATCH: Police issue terrifying footage of South Wales car meets
Gwent Police's Operation Wheeler, led by the Roads Policing and Specialist Operations (RPSO) team, is aiming to highlight the dangers and deter people from organising and attending illegal events. The initiative has already resulted in multiple arrests and convictions. Footage released of illegal car meets in Newport (Image: Gwent Police) Between January 2020 and January 2025, 382 illegal car meets were reported, with 144 of these taking place last year. The operation, which began in July 2024, has already seen significant results. One person has been convicted of causing serious injury by dangerous driving following a collision at a car meet, and another is under investigation for dangerous driving after a collision in Newport. Other offences include fraudulently obtaining an insurance policy by failing to disclose modifications, and failing to identify drivers of vehicles that were driving dangerously. Three people have been arrested for causing public nuisance and aiding and abetting dangerous driving or motor racing, and all have been issued with a community protection warning relating to organising car meets. Four people have been arrested for dangerous driving, three of whom have been charged, while one remains under investigation. Four further community protection warnings have been issued relating to organising car meets. Eight insurance policies have been cancelled, eight vehicles seized, and 10 people charged to court for motor racing on public roads. Thirty Section 59 warnings, which are issued when vehicles are found to have been used to cause distress, alarm or annoyance, or used in an anti-social manner, have been issued. Thirty Traffic Offence Reports have been issued for Construction and Use offences, which concern the condition a vehicle is kept in or something that has been done to a vehicle which makes it unsafe. Forty-one Section 172 requests (Requirement to Provide Driver Details) have been issued, 16 of which failed to reply and have been summoned to court for failing to identify a driver. The team has also issued 52 Operation Wheeler warning letters, directed towards both organisers and attendees of these events. The letters outline the serious risks associated with street racing and dangerous driving and emphasise the potential consequences of engaging in such activities. Sergeant Mitchell Harris, who is the force lead for this operation, said: "Operation Wheeler is about tackling the dangers that can come from illegal car meets and street racing, from the impact on other road users to noise pollution and the links to other criminal activities they can have. "Illegal car meets are not just a nuisance; they pose serious risks to public safety and community wellbeing. "Our goal is simple – we want to put the brakes on illegal car meets, street racing, and anti-social and dangerous driving and we're working proactively with our partners to achieve this. "If you have any information about illegal car meets, report it. "By working together, we can help keep the roads of Gwent safe for everyone." Car meets and street racing can attract hundreds of people and vehicles at a time, and there has been an increase in reports of illegal car meets over the last five years across Gwent. Those attending park their vehicles in dangerous places and cause obstructions in the road to enable drag strip style racing to take place - with spectators lining the roads either side. Racing on the public highway and dangerous driving has been the cause of many serious and fatal road traffic collisions across the UK, and police say they will use all appropriate legal powers available to prevent the occurring. Officers are working closely with other local agencies, including councils on the initiative. To report illegal car meets and street racing, or anti-social and dangerous driving, call 101 or send police a direct message on Facebook or X. .
Yahoo
27-04-2025
- Yahoo
Police descend on Telford as drivers 'turn roads into racetrack' during car meet
A town's roads were 'turned into a race track' during a car meet in the Midlands, police say. Cars were seen 'driving at speed and in a dangerous manner' during the meet-up on Friday evening (April 25) in the Hortonwood area of Telford, Shropshire. One vehicle, a white Audi, was seized under of the Police Reform Act 2002 after officers saw it "driving in a dangerous manner causing concern," said a spokesperson for West Mercia Police. READ MORE: Man hospitalised after Wolverhampton canal attack in broad daylight Get breaking news on BirminghamLive WhatsApp, click the link to join The driver will have to pay a fee to get their car returned, officers said. The Audi was pictured on the back of a flatbed lorry. Police noted that the majority of attendees were "well behaved", however, officers said "some used the roads as a racetrack". A spokesperson for West Mercia Police said: "Following reports of anti-social-behaviour, police attended a car meet in Hortonwood on Friday evening. "One vehicle was seized under Section 59 legislation after officers witnessed the vehicle driving in a dangerous manner, causing concern. "Local police have pledged to continue cracking down on car meets that disrupt the community and pose risks to public safety. "Some cars were seen travelling at speed and driving in a dangerous manner. "The majority of the attendees were well behaved, but some used the roads as a racetrack. "One vehicle issued a section 59 last year was seen driving in a dangerous manner and because of the section 59 his car was seized and the driver will have to pay a release fee to get the car back, the section 59 will still be attached to the driver and vehicle should they continue in this manner the car would be seized again."
BBC News
22-04-2025
- BBC News
'We know where you are' - police's cat and mouse car cruisers crackdown
"Oh I'm spinning... bro I'm going sideways!"The voice of an excited BMW driver racing another car, which belches black exhaust smoke as its engine revs dashcam footage gives a stark driver's-eye view of why car cruising has caused several accidents on the busy Daleside Road in jumps a red traffic light. Then as the blue lights of a police car appear behind him, he tells his friend: "Look, they pulled me bro!" The 22-year-old, from Birmingham, was one of the first drivers arrested after Nottinghamshire Police's Operation Wheelspin began in car was seized because he had already been issued with a Section 59 warning for anti-social officers seized the dashcam recording, he admitted driving without due care and attention, and driving a vehicle without a front registration has been banned from driving for 12 months and ordered to pay £130 in costs. Car cruising is nothing new, but Sgt Jim Carrington agrees that officers are now playing a game of cat and mouse, as drivers use closed social media groups to move between several locations on a single night."They are a lot more organised. They work regionally and nationally," he said."We can follow them. They will try and avoid us. What we are trying to do is send a message that Nottinghamshire is not a playground for these individuals."Sgt Carrington says the cruisers are putting both their lives and the lives of the public at risk."They're using the public highway as a race track, and if that goes wrong obviously that can create all kinds of carnage," he said. The BBC joined Operation Wheelspin as officers tracked cars converging around Nottingham and Mansfield on a Saturday database now has the number plates of more than 1,400 vehicles seen at car cruising Logan Grieh is in plain clothes so he can watch what is happening without raising suspicion and tell his uniformed colleagues which cars to intercept.A laptop in PC Grieh's unmarked police car shows a map of locations, where those cars have been picked up on automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) traffic cameras. A message over the police radio says cars are heading towards a retail park near Colwick, where drivers perform dangerous CCTV showed spectators watching cars "drifting" and skidding in circles - one with a man hanging out of the passenger window as he we arrive, a line of cars speed away. Then a silver BMW performs a "donut".Two marked police cars overtake us on blue lights, as they are called in to intercept on the A612. PC Grieh says the stunts are very dangerous because the drivers could lose control at any point."It's not guaranteed that they will complete a full donut," he says. "They can easily go into spectators that are quite close, and seriously injure them."A message comes in that the BMW has lost control on a cul-de-sac, a few miles away in Burton driver has already been issued with a Section 59 warning, so his car is of the rear tyres is almost worn away and there are two spare wheels behind the driver's seat. The driver is charged with driving while disqualified, failing to stop and driving without due care and could face a further charge of drug-driving, depending on the result of a toxicology the police hope most drivers will be deterred by their Section 59 warnings have been issued to 74 people so far and only 10 have been caught the night wears on, some of Operation Wheelspin's targets pass ANPR cameras around Castle Donington in Leicestershire, while others appear to be meeting at Worksop and the database shows vehicles heading towards another favourite car cruising spot, a short stretch of dual carriageway between two roundabouts, just off junction 27 of the M1 in Grieh watches several known number plates pass him there. It looks as though the drivers are being scared away by a marked police car dealing with a separate database shows many of them heading into Ilkeston instead, so the officers alert Derbyshire Police. By midnight, it all looks quiet, so their sergeant calls it a night. But then another message comes in. Cars are racing again at Daleside Road - the dual carriageway in Nottingham where that dashcam footage was filmed last Grieh calls in the number plate of a car that speeds away in front of him and two marked police vehicles intercept it at the next driver is given a Section 59 notice, and warned the car will be seized if he is caught he won't just be in trouble with the police, because the car belongs to his mum.
Yahoo
09-03-2025
- Yahoo
Public urged to report illegal off-road bikers
Police say officers are cracking down on the illegal off-road and electric bikes and urged people to report them. Nottinghamshire Police says three bikes were seized last weekend as officers went out on patrols in Eakring Road, Mansfield. Section 59 notices - which apply to vehicles being driven or ridden in an antisocial manner - were also issued, the force added. Officers warn riders any future contraventions involving those vehicles will result in their seizure and potential destruction. Members of the public can also play their part by making reports and submitting photos, dashcam footage and witness accounts. Inspector Kylie Davies said: "As we have said repeatedly in the past, this behaviour will not be tolerated. "These individuals are putting other road users and pedestrians at risk with their selfish, dangerous and inconsiderate actions. "They are putting themselves at risk not only of criminal prosecution, but also of very serious injury when they ride in the way that they do." Follow BBC Nottingham on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@ or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210. Mum demands more police action over bike gang attack Nottinghamshire Police
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Yahoo
Police seize car after ‘idiot' driver makes ‘hand gestures' at officers
Police in Oxfordshire have seized a car after the driver allegedly made hand gestures at the officers. The incident occurred today (Thursday, February 27) as the vehicle was travelling on the A40 near Witney. Police say that the motorist was driving 'like an idiot' before they then proceeded to make hand gestures to the officers inside a marked vehicle. READ MORE: Oxfordshire public given red alert to avoid River Thames 🌟Subscribe to the Oxford Mail for £2 for 2 months in this new flash sale offer. Benefits include an ad-light experience, the e-edition of the newspaper, unlimited access to our content and a reader's rewards scheme 👍 Full details here 👇 — Oxford Mail (@TheOxfordMail) February 25, 2025 A photograph was posted on social media by Thames Valley Police earlier this afternoon along with an update on what had happened. The statement from the force said: 'If you're going to drive like an idiot in front of a marked Roads Policing vehicle on the A40 near Witney then make hand gestures at said unit whilst already having a Section 59 warning for anti-social driving. 'Don't be surprised when we come and seize your vehicle!'
