Anger over delays in wing mirror crash probe

Stephen Choudury (60), an enforcement agent, said he had been trying to speak to a police officer about his case since his Vauxhall Vivaro van was hit on Dene Crescent, East Dene, on March 15.

He was finally offered an interview with a police officer, PC Alex Dunn, this week, but only after the Advertiser contacted South Yorkshire Police for a response.

Mr Choudury, who lives in Leeds but works in the Rotherham area, said he knew where the man who crashed into his van lived, had video footage of the incident and had a witness who was in the van at the time.

Video footage shows a van taking a wing mirror off Mr Choudury’s car and accelerating away without stopping.

Mr Choudury said he contacted the police on the day of the incident and expected an officer to come out and see him that evening.

When that did not happen, Mr Choudury managed to track down where the offending motorist lived and waited outside their house but police failed to turn up as promised.

Mr Choudury said he had waited for two-and-a-half hours, only to be told he had to go to a police station to report the incident.

He travelled to a police station in Rotherham but no-one was available to speak to him and he was told someone would be in touch.

Three weeks later, Mr Choudury was given an appointment to see an officer and drove 33 miles from his home in Leeds to see him.

But after waiting for almost two hours, he was told the officer had left the station and was not available to see him.

Eventually, a police sergeant contacted Mr Choudury to explain the police had a backlog of “hundreds” of hit and run cases waiting to be investigated.

“I have been on the phone four times and four times they have passed me off to someone else,” he said.

“They can’t even manage a simple crime like this — even when someone has got all the evidence in front of them.”

Mr Choudury said he believed he had all the evidence he needed to prove who damaged his car.

“I called them on the day it happened and told them I have the evidence and have got my laptop here with the footage on it, which shows you his registration number as clear as anything,” he said.

“All they have got to do is send someone out to see me and I’ll tell them what’s happened.”

A spokeswoman for South Yorkshire Police said: “Due to ongoing critical incidents, officers were unable to immediately attend the reported fail to stop.

“Officers contacted the complainant and invited them to attend a police station, together with any evidence and further information to support their report.

“The claimant declined to do this and the matter was allocated to an officer from the Rotherham district.

“There was an unfortunate delay in progressing the case, and an arranged meeting had to be cancelled at short notice as the officer was required to assist in locating a high-risk missing child.

“The complainant did not request any further appointment to be made.”