A man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a car struck several pedestrians on one of Derby’s busiest streets.
Derbyshire police said seven people were injured, sustaining “a range of serious but not life-threatening injuries”, in the incident in Friar Gate at about 9.30pm on Saturday. The force said that “contrary to online speculation” there were no deaths.
It said detectives were working alongside officers from counter-terrorism policing but were not yet designating the incident as a terror attack and were “keeping an open mind about the potential motives”.
Speaking close to the scene on Sunday afternoon, Ch Supt Emma Aldred said: “While none of those injured in the incident have suffered life-threatening physical injuries, the impact on them, I am sure, is just beginning to be felt.”
She said officers apprehended a suspect on the other side of the city centre, in Station Approach, seven minutes after the incident took place. “This swift action would not have been possible without eyewitnesses who contacted us about the vehicle’s whereabouts as it was driven away from the scene and around the city centre,” she said.
The driver of a black Suzuki Swift was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, causing serious injury through dangerous driving, inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent and dangerous driving. He was described as a Derby man aged 36, originally from India, who has lived in the UK for several years.
Victims were treated by ambulance crews at the scene of the incident before being taken to the Royal Derby hospital and Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham, police said.
On Sunday afternoon the police cordon was lifted but businesses on the street, including bars and restaurants, remained closed.
One man, who gave his name only as Ashen and had been working in a nearby hospitality business at the time of the incident, said: “There were a lot of people here. It was a very busy day.”
He said he saw “something unusual happening” in the street and then “a few minutes later police and ambulances came” and the road was closed. “I was surprised by what was going on, some terrible thing happening,” he said.
Mark Lucas, 47, a local resident, described seeing people on the floor who appeared to be seriously hurt after the incident. He told PA Media: “I realised it was a big incident – people were over the floor and there were a lot of police and ambulances.”
Another person who arrived at the scene shortly after the incident told the Derby Telegraph there were people lying in the road. They said: “It was such a frightening experience. We came around the corner and there was just people everywhere. We didn’t realise what had happened and then we slowly realised that it was something bad.”
Witnesses also described seeing debris scattered in the road after the incident and said people who were nearby were crying, describing onlookers as “shook up” and “panicking”.
Mike McCluskey, a medical student who lives in student housing on the road where the incident happened, said he did not witness anything directly but saw “a bunch of blue lights flashing outside my window most of the night”.
“I go for runs sometimes or go to the shop,” he said. “It’s quite scary – I could easily have been going for a run last night.”
McCluskey said he was concerned the incident would raise tensions in the area. “I do hear opinions from other people that are quite extreme,” he said, adding that when “events like this” were reported in the media “it does get used” to stir division.
The Derby North MP, Catherine Atkinson, said she was “deeply shocked” by what she described as a “serious incident”. Posting on Facebook, she said: “My thoughts are with those injured and I’m grateful to our emergency services. Please follow police advice … Anyone who has information should contact them as soon as possible.”
Baggy Shanker, the MP for Derby South, said his thoughts were with “everyone who has been affected and with their loved ones”.
Derby County football club said in a statement: “Our thoughts are with all those affected, their families and the wider community at this difficult time.”
The Rt Rev Malcolm Macnaughton, the bishop of Repton, said prayers at Derby Cathedral and in churches across the diocese on Sunday had been with the injured and those who witnessed the events unfold.
“The incident in Derby city last night has shaken us all,” he said. “We like to think of our city as a safe place for everyone.”
Aldred said: “I know this incident will have sent shock waves through our communities, but I would like to reassure people that we have a dedicated team of detectives working on it.
“Thanks to the fast actions of officers, working on eyewitness information from the public, we were able to quickly arrest the suspect in the city just a few minutes after the incident took place. I also want to thank the members of the public and staff from local businesses in Friar Gate, who helped officers with first aid in the immediate aftermath of the incident.”
The education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme: “My thoughts are with anyone that’s been affected by this, those who’ve been injured or hurt, and their family members at this really difficult time.”
She added: “The police are actively investigating. We don’t believe there is wider cause for the public to be alarmed. The police have made an arrest and the home secretary is being kept updated on this.”
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: theguardian.com
