Force makes mandatory referral to the IOPC following death of teenage girl on M5
Avon and Somerset Constabulary has made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) following the death of a teenage girl on the M5 on Monday night (November 11).
The 17-year-old was being transported to police custody when she exited the police vehicle and was struck by a car.
In a statement, the force said: “We can confirm the 17-year-old was being transported in a police vehicle shortly before the fatal collision.
“The officers stopped the vehicle while heading northbound between junctions 25 (Taunton) and 24 (Bridgwater).
“The girl exited the stationary police vehicle, and she was subsequently tragically involved in a collision on the southbound carriageway involving another vehicle, shortly after 11pm.
“The ambulance service were called and attended within a few minutes. The girl was sadly pronounced deceased at the scene.”
Detective Chief Superintendent Rachel Shields said: “Our thoughts are first and foremost with the girl’s family.
“Overnight we have updated her next of kin regarding what has happened and we will ensure they are supported by specially-trained officers at what is an incredibly difficult time following the tragic loss of such a young life.”
She added: “We believe it is important that we are as transparent as possible at this early stage about the tragic circumstances.
“A critical incident was declared and our Professional Standards Department notified overnight. A mandatory referral has been made to the IOPC.
“The IOPC has decided to take on the investigation independently, and we welcome the oversight it will give.
“We recognise this incident has had a significant effect on the devastated officers, plus members of the public, who witnessed what happened, as well as other officers and staff involved in our response. We will ensure staff are able to access any welfare support they may benefit from following this tragedy.”
The M5 was closed to enable emergency services to respond and investigative inquiries to be carried out. It has now been fully reopened.
IOPC Director David Ford said: “This was a truly tragic incident and my thoughts are with Tamzin’s family and friends and everyone affected by the events of that evening.
“We are contacting her family to express our sympathies, explain our role, and set out how our investigation will progress. We will keep them fully updated as our investigation continues.
“Our role is to independently investigate all the circumstances surrounding this incident.
“As soon as we were notified by Avon and Somerset Police, we sent our investigators to the police post incident procedure to begin gathering evidence.”
The IOPC said its investigation was at an early stage, and so far has initial accounts from officers involved and is obtaining statements from several witnesses.