Mystery over death of boy, 14, killed in broad daylight e-bike crash as cops hunt Kia driver

The Irish Sun

4 days ago

COPS are urgently hunting for the driver of a Kia after a 14-year-old boy was killed in a horror crash.
Jacob Calland was riding an e-scooter with a friend before it collided with a car in Wythenshawe, Manchester, back in March.
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Jacob Calland with is mother Carly
Credit: Greater Manchester Police
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Cops are now looking to urgently speak with the driver of this car
Credit: Greater Manchester Police
The teenager spent eight days in intensive care before he succumbed to his injuries.
No arrests have been made by cops but officers have now released an image of a vehicle as part of the investigation.
Cops are urgently looking to speak to the driver of the car – a white 2015 onward Kia Venga - in relation to the incident.
The driver is not a suspect in the investigation and officers only wish to speak to them to support their ongoing work, said Greater Manchester Police.
Detective Constable Steve Pennington from our Serious Collision Investigation Unit said: "This was a truly tragic incident that has devastated a young boy's family.
"Our thoughts remain with Jacob's loved ones, and we continue to support his family as they navigate this unimaginable loss.
'We are very keen to speak to the driver of the white Kia Venga who may have witnessed the moments leading up to the collision.
"I want to be clear that they are not under suspicion – we believe they could have vital information that may help us understand what happened.
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"If you are that driver, or know who they might be, please get in touch with us as soon as possible.'
Jacob's heartbroken mum Carly arrived at the scene moments after the crash, said "18 minutes of him leaving this front door, his life was gone".
She called for stricter regulations and safety measures for e-scooters and said "if I can save one life it is going to be worth it".
Carly previously described her son as "very loving, headstrong, and a cheeky chappy".
"He knew what he wanted in life and he was always going to go for it," she said.
She said her son's fatal crash was "something I've never seen before".
"You see it on TV but that's your life changing in that split instance it was surreal", Carly added.
In conversations with Jacob, the mum said she had warned him not to get on e-bikes or electric scooters, because "he didn't have road sense on his feet never mind on something as powerful as these things".
E-scooters are legal to buy and use on private land, but it is illegal to ride them on public roads unless they are hired through an authorised rental scheme.
Alongside her calls for e-scooter licences and a ban on their sale to children, Carly wants to see more safety equipment on the vehicles.
She said: "When we get in a car we have to wear a seat belt. Why when they get on the e-scooters do they just get to go on them with no helmets [and] no safety equipment?"
Carly also wants stricter punishments for those breaching e-scooter laws.
The heartbroken mum said: "You think it is never going to be you. I thought the same. I never thought that my son was going to die on an e-scooter.
"I hope no other parent, brother, sister... has to go through this because it isn't an easy journey.
"I just hope that our message and campaign and... putting my pain into [Jacob's] power is going to save somebody else from doing this."
Cops urged anyone who witnessed the incident or has any CCTV, dashcam, or doorbell footage is asked to get in touch with officers.
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This can be done by contacting police via 101 or gmp.police.uk, quoting log 2263 of 19/03/25.
Alternatively, you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.