Officers issue warning after intercepting car meet

We are issuing a warning to those taking part in illegal street racing after officers intercepted a car meet in Stoke-on-Trent recently.

On Friday 30 September, proactive officers went to Reginald Mitchell Way, Tunstall, and found around 40 vehicles in attendance. They had arranged to meet on social media and were seen driving dangerously and posting videos about it online.

We were able to track down 17 of the vehicles involved and issue warning notices to the drivers. All of them had driven away once they spotted officers at the scene.

Sergeant Chris McCarthy, of Stoke North local policing team, said: “The minority who feel that they can use roads as race tracks, or car parks as performance areas will be dealt with accordingly.

“Dangerous driving and anti-social meets can cause a great deal of disruption to local communities and can put motorists at risk of serious injury and even death.”

Those found driving carelessly or dangerously, causing unnecessary noise nuisance or acting in an anti-social manner, could see action taken against them in the form of:

• Warnings and vehicle seizures under the Police Reform Act 2002
• Fixed penalty tickets being issued
• Summons to court, seizure of your vehicle and possible arrest

Staffordshire Commissioner for Police, Fire & Rescue and Crime Ben Adams is Co-Chair of the Staffordshire Safer Roads Partnership. He said: “Keeping our roads safe for everyone is a key priority in my Police & Crime Plan, and this kind of dangerous, reckless driving harms our communities.

“We can all play a part in helping to keep our roads safe, and I would encourage anyone concerned about illegal racing, car meets or anti-social driving to report their concerns.”

Councillor David Williams, cabinet member for community safety and resilience said: “We take reports of anti-social behaviour extremely seriously and the council’s antisocial behaviour team work tirelessly with Staffordshire Police and our other partners to reduce incidents of ASB across the city and take action against those responsible where appropriate.

“This type of activity is not only dangerous but also causes a great deal of community concern and we will work closely with Staffordshire Police to prevent future events.”