Government ‘turning a blind eye to road carnage’, says Harry Dunn’s family

The stepfather of teenage motorcyclist Harry Dunn has criticised the Government for not taking crashes outside US military bases in the UK seriously.

Bruce Charles accused the Government of “turning a blind eye” to incidents outside bases including RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire, where 19-year-old Mr Dunn was killed.

Mr Charles said ministers should “hang their heads in shame”, claiming they “don’t appear to care” about road accidents involving US military personnel.

He said he would like to “challenge even one single Government minister to come out and prove me wrong”.

Harry Dunn death
Harry Dunn death

Mr Dunn was killed when his motorbike collided with a car outside RAF Croughton on August 27 last year.

The suspected driver, 42-year-old Anne Sacoolas, the wife of an intelligence official, claimed diplomatic immunity following the crash and was able to return to her home country, sparking an international controversy.

An extradition request for Mrs Sacoolas was rejected by US secretary of state Mike Pompeo last month.

Dunn family spokesman Radd Seiger said there has been a problem of crashes outside US bases since the 1950s.

Mr Charles said: “Crashes outside American military bases are clearly a problem and, as we all know, continue to be a serious issue following our son’s death and the three near misses that followed.

“Despite some murmurings when the dashcam footage of these near misses surfaced, no one in Government is taking the issue seriously. It has fallen to Radd and myself to highlight the problem and call for change.”

Carnage outside US military bases has been going on since the 1950s to this day, yet no one in Govt is lifting a finger to do anything about it. Shame on them. Please see attached statement and article from the Cambridge Daily News Feb 1955. #HarryDunnhttps://t.co/TnIqIIJZuCpic.twitter.com/LJDpEbhwWf

— Radd Seiger (@RaddSeiger) February 24, 2020

Mr Charles continued: “Not a single Government minister has joined us in that call. As a family, we can’t bring Harry back but we will not let his needless death be in vain.

“My family and I strongly believe that the UK Government are deliberately turning a blind eye to this carnage outside the bases in deference to whatever the US government and its personnel does on these bases.

“We are being killed and injured. Our children are being killed and injured. Yet this Government doesn’t appear to care like they didn’t care about us after Harry died.

“They should hang their heads in shame. Frankly, it’s disgusting and we will do whatever it takes to help save lives and prevent injury even if they won’t.

“I don’t know what they do on these bases but whatever it is they need to do it and be better and safer neighbours.

“I now challenge even one single Government minister to come out and prove me wrong and lead the review Radd and I have called for, instead of standing on the sidelines wishing we would just go away. We never will.”

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