Car ploughs into parked vehicles on Gledwood Drive in Hayes before driver is detained
Doorbell footage shows a grey car hitting cars parked on a driveway in north Hayes on Sunday night. The driver tried to run off but was held on the ground moments later.
Video: @talvin_singh and @royalty.billy
A car crashed into vehicles parked on a driveway on Gledwood Drive in Hayes on Sunday night, 18 October. The driver tried to run off but was stopped within seconds.
Doorbell camera footage from a resident, timed at about 9.47pm, shows a grey Fiat coming along the residential street at speed and hitting cars parked on a driveway. A black people carrier is shunted sideways, and the crash sets off the car alarms on nearby vehicles.
Driver held on the ground
In the footage the driver gets out of the car straight after the crash and tries to run off along the pavement. The person is caught almost at once and held on the ground. Police cars with blue lights arrive within about a minute.
It is understood that the people who detained the driver may have been plain-clothes officers, but police have not confirmed this. The footage does not show whether the driver was arrested or what happened afterwards.
Reports of a police chase
Locals said the crash came at the end of a police chase. The resident who shared the footage said they had been told the car was stolen and had reportedly been driven the wrong way down the M40 before the chase ended in Hayes.
The Metropolitan Police has not confirmed any of these claims. Police have not said whether there was a pursuit, whether the car was stolen, whether anyone was arrested or whether anyone was hurt.
Any police pursuit that ends in a crash may be referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), which decides whether it needs to investigate. No referral has been confirmed in this case.
A quiet residential street
Gledwood Drive is a residential road of mostly semi-detached and terraced family homes in north Hayes, in the UB4 postcode area of the London Borough of Hillingdon. Many of the houses have cars parked on their front driveways, as shown in the footage.
Residents woke on Monday to damaged cars on at least one driveway. Car owners whose vehicles were hit should report the damage to their insurers and ask police for a crime reference number.
Anyone who saw the crash or what happened before it, or who has dashcam or doorbell footage from the area that evening, can contact the police on 101, or on 999 in an emergency. Information can also be given anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.