Yesterday’s (Thursday’s) collision between a car and a pedestrian, which closed the A421 for several hours, is being investigated by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) after it emerged it involved an unmarked police car.
The collision happened at around 2.15am on the eastbound slip road coming from the Marsh Leys roundabout in Kempston towards the A6. Emergency services attended and the pedestrian, a man in his 60s, was taken to hospital where he remains in critical condition.
Bedfordshire Police say that the pedestrian’s next of kin have been informed and are being supported by specialist-trained officers.
The collision has been referred to the IOPC as per standard protocol for a death or serious injury involving contact with the police. At the time of the collision, the vehicle was not responding to an incident or engaged in a pursuit.
Detective Sergeant Shona Birkby from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Serious Collision Investigations Unit, said: “We are appealing to anyone who witnessed this collision or saw a person walking along the A421 around this time to contact us and help us with our investigation.
“We are particularly keen to hear from anyone who was travelling in the area at the time and captured any footage on their dashcam.”
Anyone with information or footage is asked to contact police on 101 or report online at beds.police.uk/ro/report, quoting Operation Vollans.
