Pal of teen killed in horror police chase crash had swapped seats with him just minutes before, inquest hears

A teenager who was killed after crashing his van during a police chase had swapped seats with his friend minutes before the horror crash, an inquest heard.

Thomas Patrick Connor, known as Tull, was behind the wheel when his Vauxhall Astra van ploughed into a railway bridge on Red Bank in Manchester city centre.

The vehicle was being chased by officers from GMP who mistakenly believed it had been involved in a burglary.

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A jury at Manchester Coroner's Court heard that although the 19-year-old was driving at the time of the fatal smash, his pal had been in the driver's seat when the pursuit started.

Thomas Price, who was 17 at the time of the tragedy in April 2019, had been behind the wheel when the van was asked to stop.

He did not have a driving licence and had already been disqualified from driving following a previous offence, the court heard.

Following the crash, Price lied to police, telling them that Tull had been driving for the entirety of the chase.

But his lies were untangled after CCTV enquiries later established he'd been driving for the first part of the pursuit, before switching over with Tull after the van got a flat tyre.

In the hours before the crash, the pair had visited Steven Charles Snooker Centre in Cheetham Hill Road.

The inquest heard that the pair had been drinking beer, although a member of staff said Tull seemed 'normal' and did not appear to be drunk.

After leaving the venue, Mr Connor and Price visited a Co-op store in the Green Quarter at about 10.45pm, where they purchased more beer.

During a police interview, which was read out to the court, Price said he had 'panicked' when asked why he initially lied to officers about his role in the chase.

"I believed the car to be Thomas' car.