Two brothers are set to appear in court today charged in connection with a horror crash which killed four people including a father-of-three and his baby son.
Elliott Bower, 18, is accused of driving a VW Golf which was being pursued by police before it crashed into a VW people carrier in Sheffield around 8.50pm on Friday evening.
Police have also charged his brother Declan Bower, 23, with aggravated vehicle taking.
Adnan Ashraf Jarral was in the people carrier and just ’20 seconds’ from his home when he died along with his one-year-old son, Usman, in the collision.
Mr Jarral’s wife Tahreen was cut out of the vehicle’s mangled wreckage and remains in hospital with a broken leg and back injuries.
Her 22-year-old friend, named locally as Nikola Dunova, was also in the Touran along with her parents Miroslav Duna, 50, and Vlasta Dunova, 41, who both died at the scene.
Elliott Bower, 18 (left) and his brother and Declan Bower, 23 (right), have been charged in connection with the fatal crash
Father of three Adnan Ashraf Jarral, 35, (pictured right) and his one-year-old son Usman Adnan Jarral died in the crash in Sheffield
Miss Dunova and her three-year-old daughter Livia were fighting for their lives in hospital last night.
Mr Jarral’s uncle Azrat Mirza told the Sun Online the family were ‘literally 20 seconds’ from their home when tragedy struck.
He said Mr Jarral’s wife remains in hospital where she is ‘clutching a photo’ of her one-year-old son.
The two families were returning home from a day trip to London when their vehicle was hit by a speeding VW Golf, which was travelling on the wrong side of the road while being chased by a police BMW.
Brothers Elliott Bower, 18, and Declan Bower, 23, will appear at Sheffield Magistrates’ Court today in connection with the collision.
Elliott Bower, 18, the driver of the vehicle involved in the collision, has been charged with four counts of causing death by dangerous driving.
He is also charged with three counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving, handling stolen goods and possession of cannabis.
Declan Bower, 23, has been charged with aggravated vehicle taking and death caused by an accident with aggravated factors.
He is also charged with handing stolen goods, two counts of driving while disqualified, two counts of driving without insurance, possession of a bladed article and possession of cannabis.
Both men are from Sheffield, South Yorkshire.
A 17-year-old boy arrested at the scene in connection to the collision remains in custody.
Adnan Ashraf Jarral, 35, (main picture) and his one year old son Usman Adnan Jarral (pictured right) who died in the Sheffield car crash
Husband and wife Vlasta Dunova, 41, and Miroslav Duna, 50 (pictured together), were both pronounced dead at the scene
Mr Jarral’s uncle Shafqat Mirza questioned the police’s decision to pursue the car through a residential area and said ‘the tragedy had left a gap which can never be filled’.
Mr Mirza said: ‘It may be that police ought to have laid off and let it go and found some other ways and means of chasing the car, knowing that it was a wet and dangerous road.
‘Maybe if police had handled things differently then the accident wouldn’t have happened.
‘I’m not wholly blaming the police but if there are ways and means of doing the chase in a different way, then the police ought to take that into consideration.’
Tariq Mirza, 57, another of Adnan’s uncles, refused to blame the three occupants of the VW Golf for the fatal crash, who are all in police custody.
He said that in his religion: ‘We believe what will happen will happen’.
He added: ‘At the time we were upset but what we believe in within our religion is what is destined to happen will happen.
‘We do not blame anybody for what happened. What I believe is [the crash] is more of an excuse for his death.
‘He was meant to go on that day, that is our belief, that his time was up. That was his place, that was his time to die.
‘As Muslims we believe that was the space and place he was going to die.’
However Mr Mirza said he wanted the tragic events to be a lesson to the public.
He said: ‘It is a lesson for other people. People need to be careful and injuries can be avoided.’
It is thought Mrs Jarral was originally from Slovakia and had converted to Islam and changed her name.
The couple were said to have been planning a trip to Mecca at the end of the month.
Rizwan Jarral mourns the passing of his brother Adnan Ashraf Jarral who died after a fatal car crash in Sheffield, along with his one-year-old son
The smash happened less than 50 yards from the home of the Dunova family, who are Slovakian.
Mr Jarral was about to drop them off when the Golf collided with them while overtaking a bus – catapulting the people carrier into parked cars along the road.
The crash happened outside the home of Tufail Hussain, 80, who was one of the first people to get to the wreckage.
He said: ‘It was just terrible. It’s the worst thing I have ever seen.’
Mr Jarral’s uncle Shafqat Mirza questioned the police’s decision to pursue the car through a residential area and said ‘the tragedy had left a gap which can never be filled’
Shafqat Mirza described his nephew was a ‘humble and polite’ man who was extremely proud of his two sons and his step-son.
Mr Mirza said: ‘It’s been absolutely devastating for all of us and all the family.
‘Here we have a young man who was with us, around us, always asking everybody how we are, and now we find that he is no longer with us.
‘It’s something that we can’t come to terms with. It was absolutely horrific. So devastating.’
Mr Mirza said his nephew was a ‘loving father’ and was ‘full of life’.
He was speaking as relatives and members of the community gathered at the family’s mosque.
He said his nephew, who was born in Pakistan and came to Britain as a business student, left another son, aged three, and a six-year-old stepson.
He said factory worker Mr Jarral was always updating Facebook when his son Usman would say a word or start to walk.
‘He was always posting about how proud he is,’ he said. ‘He was an absolutely devoted father. I’m a father myself but I think he was two steps ahead of me.’
Tariq Mirza, a carer, paid tribute to ‘bubbly’ Adnan and his one-year-old ‘loving’ son.
He said: ‘We are just shocked. There are no words. They had just come back from a day trip to London.
‘The whole community is shocked, it has hit everyone. Adnan was a bubbly character who was full of life.
‘He would talk to everyone, everyone loved him. He was never angry.’
A young girl kisses a teddy bear tribute left at the scene of the fatal car crash which killed four people
Flowers and tributes have been left by the side of the road in Darnell, Sheffield but all traces of the crash had been removed
Flowers were left by the side of the road on Sunday morning by other mourners but all traces of the crash had been removed.
In a post on Facebook, the Helping Hands charity in Sheffield, said: ’35-year-old Adnan Ashraf Jarral and his one-year-old son Usman Adnan Jarral have passed away following a car collision in Darnall.
‘Janaza details to be finalised in days to come.’
His brother Ahtsham Mirza, posted on Facebook, said: ‘May Allah bless my beloved brother Adnan Ashraf Jarral and on his son. Amen.’
Posted on Janaza Announcement, a funeral bereavement notification service website, they said: ‘Adnan Ashraf Jarral and his one year old son Usman Adnan Jarral have both sadly passed away following a car collision.
‘The funeral is to be confirmed.’
The uncle of one of the men who lost his life also paid tribute, and added: ‘He was a proud dad of three, who was always smiling and was looking forward to a family trip this month.
‘May Allah grant you a place in the gardens of paradise.’
Four people were killed after a VW Golf being chased by police crashed into this VW Touran in Sheffield
Three suspects aged 17, 18 and 22 who were inside this VW Golf, pictured left, were arrested at the scene. Police confirmed they were chasing the Golf at the time of the collision
Police were chasing the VW Golf, pictured right, when it crashed into the VW Touran, centre
Police said the VW Touran contained the members of two families in a press conference
Police covered the VW Touran with a tarpaulin before loading it onto a recovery truck and removing it for examination
The police car involved in the chase was undamaged. It was removed from the scene as part of the independent investigation
Witnesses said an off-duty midwife who lives near the crash scene tried to save the victims, including the baby boy.
Iqbal Khan, 69, said: ‘I heard a car travelling really fast and a loud bang, which I thought was fireworks.
‘I had heard police sirens for quite a while in the area and there were six or seven police cars immediately on the scene of the crash.’
Miss Khan said locals believe the family in the people carrier were Slovakian and the three men arrested in the Golf are from the Manor estate in Sheffield.
Miss Khan said: ‘It’s horrific that four innocent lives have been lost.
‘The police seemed more concerned about arrested the lads in the Golf than helping the people in the other vehicle.
‘A midwife who lives up the road tried to resuscitate the baby. She is all shaken up at the moment.’
The IOPC confirmed it had already reviewed dash-cam footage of the crash from the police vehicle involved and said ‘there was no indication that the police vehicle collided with either of the vehicles involved’.
The police car involved in the chase, pictured, was loaded onto the back of a recovery truck so it can be examined by experts from the Independent Office for Police Conduct, who have launched their own investigation
Firefighters had to cut the roof from the VW Touran to recover the victims’ bodies and rescue the female survivor
In a statement, Regional Director Miranda Biddle said: ‘Our thoughts are with those families who have lost their loved ones and all those affected by what happened on Friday evening including the emergency services.
‘As soon as we were informed, we sent investigators to the scene and we will be carrying out an investigation to establish what actions South Yorkshire Police took prior to the crash.
‘This is standard procedure when lives are lost following an incident involving the police.
‘We have been able to view dash cam footage which confirms that although a pursuit did take place prior to the crash, there is no indication that the police vehicle collided with either of the vehicles involved.
‘We have also obtained initial statements from the officers involved.
‘South Yorkshire Police is carrying out a criminal investigation and has arrested the three men travelling in the Golf.
‘We will be making contact with the families affected as soon as possible to explain our role and what they can expect to happen during our investigation.’
The Independent Office for Police Conduct has launched an investigation into the crash as the car was being chased by police at the time
It is believed the VW Touran was preparing to turn right into Bannham Road when it was involved in the collision
The three suspects in the Golf, managed to escape the crash with only minor injuries and did not require hospital treatment
The VW Touran, pictured, was carrying seven people including the driver when it was hit by the VW Golf
The seven people in this VW Touran, pictured, were members of two families according to South Yorkshire Police
The mayor of Sheffield Dan Jarvis, 45, posted on Twitter that his thoughts are with the families of those who died and the local community.
Detective Chief Inspector Jude Ashmore, investigating, said: ‘This incident and the fact that four people have lost their lives is tragic and understandably highly emotive.
‘I would however please urge people to think about the comments they post on social media to enable criminal proceedings to go through the courts unhindered and allow those affected to grieve.’
South Yorkshire Police added; ‘Due to the fact that the Golf was being pursued before the collision, a mandatory referral has been made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).’
‘Anyone with information should call 101 quoting incident number 741 of 9 November 2018.’
The mayor of Sheffield Dan Jarvis, 45, posted on Twitter that his thoughts are with the families of those who died and the local community
The IOPC confirmed it had already reviewed dash-cam footage of the crash from the police vehicle involved and said ‘there is no indication that the police vehicle collided with either of the vehicles involved’
One resident who has lived in the area for more than 40 years said he thought the crash was a gunshot.
Terry Burke, 75, said he heard the loud bang while he watched the Sheffield football derby on television.
Mr Burke, who has lived in the property just 100 metres from the scene for the past 45 years, said ambulances, police cars and the fire service all arrived at the scene within minutes.
Sheffield District Commander Stuart Barton, pictured, confirmed two families were travelling in the VW Touran
He said: ‘There were two fire engines. There were buses trapped down here. The bang was very very loud, everyone on the street heard it.
‘When I heard the bang everybody rushed to their windows. I have heard many bangs on the road before.
‘By the time I looked there were cop cars everywhere you looked, I have no idea where they got them all from and how they got here so quickly.
‘There were at least ten police cars.’
Another resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said there were chases down the street ‘almost every day’.
The woman, who lives on the same road, added: ‘The car must have been going very very fast.
‘It happens nearly once a day. It happens at least once every two days. They come flying down here.’
Adam Robinson, 24, a warehouseman, said: ‘I heard sirens coming down the road and know the car they were chasing must have been going fast because of his load the bang was when it crashed – it sounded like a gun going off.
‘I looked out of my upstairs bedroom window and saw loads of police cars that where there very rapidly. Then a ambulances and fire engines arrived.’
All the vehicles have now been removed from the scene but a police cordon remains in place.
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