Police mistakenly informed the wrong family that their teenage son had passed away in a car accident, describing the incident as “traumatic.” South Yorkshire Police has self-referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) following the error.
On December 13, a tragic crash on Todwick Road in Rotherham claimed the lives of a 17-year-old girl and 18-year-old Joshua Johnson. Another teen, 17-year-old Trevor Wynn, was hospitalized and placed under sedation after the accident.
In a mix-up, authorities misidentified the sedated teenager as Joshua Johnson and informed Trevor Wynn’s family of his supposed death. It wasn’t until over three weeks later, on January 4, that doubts were raised about the victims’ identities.
Following formal identification procedures, including forensic analysis, it was confirmed that Trevor Wynn was the hospitalized individual receiving treatment, while Joshua Johnson had tragically passed away.
Assistant Chief Constable Colin McFarlane expressed shock over the situation and emphasized the need to provide support to the affected families. The police force is cooperating with specialist agencies to assist the families and investigate the identification process to prevent similar errors in the future.
An 18-year-old has been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving, and a 19-year-old has been arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice. Both individuals are currently on bail pending further investigations.
