The father of 17-year-old A66 crash victim Cole Worthy has been charged with common assault and obstructing police after a disturbance allegedly erupted during his son’s funeral.
Gye Worthy, 39, is accused of attacking a mourner and obstructing officers who were called to Teesside Crematorium in Middlesbrough on Wednesday.
The funeral for Cole, who died in the devastating A66 crash alongside four friends and two police officers, was reportedly disrupted after his father took exception to comments made during the service.
A source close to the family said Cole’s mother, Natalie McConnell, was left “devastated and shocked” by what happened at her son’s funeral.
Father charged after funeral disturbance
Cleveland Police confirmed that a 39-year-old man arrested at Teesside Crematorium following the disturbance had since been charged.
The force said: “The 39-year-old man arrested yesterday at Teesside Crematorium, following a disturbance during a service, has now been charged with common assault, public order and obstructing police.
“He is due to appear before Teesside Magistrates’ Court on October 2.”
Worthy, from Acklam, Middlesbrough, works as an offshore deck foreman and runs his own specialist lifting company, which operates on offshore platforms.
His semi-detached £200,000 home was also rammed by a car on August 22, shortly before the fatal A66 crash.
Cole remembered as ‘forever 17’
Cole’s funeral featured a horse-drawn hearse and floral tributes bearing his name as friends and relatives gathered to say goodbye.
A family memorial described him as an adored son, brother, grandson, nephew and cousin, as well as a loving boyfriend to Ruby and a cherished friend.
“Fly high Cole, forever 17,” the tribute read.
Cole died on the A66 alongside Michael Robert Cahill, 23, Theo Rae, 17, Jakub Matusiak, 23, and Makai Saddington, 18.
Police officers PC Matthew Blades, 37, and PC Tom Clough, 38, also died when the Volkswagen Passat carrying the five young men collided with a police vehicle.
Police said the five young men had links to organized crime and were allegedly attempting to flee officers when the car was driven the wrong way along the A66 before crashing into the police vehicle.
There has been no suggestion that Gye Worthy has any links to organized crime.
The crash has been linked to a tit-for-tat gangland turf war over the supply of drugs on Teesside.
Tributes continue for the two officers
Cole’s funeral took place on the same day as the funeral of PC Blades in Hartlepool.
Hundreds of police officers lined the streets to pay tribute to Blades, whose coffin, draped in the Union flag, was carried into a packed church as emotional colleagues wiped away tears.
PC Clough was remembered at a separate service on Thursday.
Before joining Cleveland Police, Clough had served in Iraq and Afghanistan with a bomb disposal unit. He later worked for British Transport Police and the Civil Nuclear Police.
Colleagues recalled that Clough used to joke that nobody would attend his funeral. Hundreds of mourners ultimately turned out to prove him wrong.
Security concerns surrounding the funerals
The funerals of several of the young men killed in the crash have taken place amid heightened police attention.
Schools closed early for some of the previous funerals, prompting a political row, although they remained open during Cole Worthy’s service.
On Monday, teenagers were reportedly seen hanging from car windows as crowds gathered for the funeral of Theo Rae, one of Cole’s close friends.
Authorities responded by deploying an additional 200 specialist officers, including armed police, to Middlesbrough from six other northern forces as officers sought to contain escalating violence in the area.