Uncle of Dead Joyrider Was Jailed for Exact Same Deadly Stunt — 100mph Wrong-Way Chase on Identical Road Just Months Earlier.
In a chilling twist of family history, the uncle of a teenager killed in a catastrophic police pursuit was himself jailed just months earlier for driving the wrong way down the exact same dual carriageway at speeds of up to 100mph while fleeing officers.
Aaron Saddington, 23, received a 20-month prison sentence in June after a high-speed chase on the A66 in May. Court records show he ran a red light, joined the dual carriageway travelling against the flow of traffic, and reached 100mph as unmarked and marked police vehicles pursued him from the correct side of the road. He was eventually stopped, attempted to flee on foot, and was arrested. He pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, driving while disqualified and driving without insurance.
Three months later, on Saturday, the same stretch of the A66 became the scene of a far deadlier collision. A Volkswagen Passat carrying five young men — including Aaron’s nephew Makai Saddington, 18 — was fleeing police when it entered the dual carriageway travelling in the wrong direction. Seconds later the car smashed head-on into an armed response vehicle. Five occupants of the Passat died: Makai Saddington, Michael Cahill, 23, Theo Rae, 17, Jakub Matusiak, 23, and Cole Worthy, 17. Two police officers — PC Matthew Blades, 37, a married father of two, and PC Tom Clough, 38, a former Iraq war veteran — were also killed instantly.
Police had abandoned the pursuit once the Passat reached the A66, but the crash still occurred. Investigators believe the group may have been involved in a revenge mission linked to an earlier incident in which a house belonging to one of the victims’ fathers was rammed by another vehicle in the early hours of the same morning. Several of those in the Passat had previous convictions, and Makai Saddington himself had a record including drug offences, possession of a knife, assaulting police and racially aggravated harassment. Footage from earlier this year also showed him involved in another police pursuit.
The investigation has since widened. Multiple arrests have been made in connection with serious and organised crime links, with some suspects charged with firearms and drug offences. National Crime Agency officers have joined the inquiry. Social media content glorifying dangerous driving by some of those involved has prompted calls for stronger action under the Online Safety Act, and platforms have removed certain accounts.
The parallel between uncle and nephew has drawn particular attention. Both men drove the wrong way on the A66 while being chased by police. In Aaron’s case, no one was killed. In Makai’s, seven lives were lost in seconds. Floral tributes continue to grow for the two fallen officers, and a fundraising appeal for their families has raised substantial sums. Inquests into the deaths are due to open shortly.
The case has reignited debate about the risks of high-speed pursuits, the influence of social media on reckless driving, and the challenges police face when dealing with young drivers linked to wider criminal networks. For the families of all seven victims, the discovery that the same road had already featured in a near-identical family episode only months earlier adds another layer of tragic irony to an already devastating incident.