Officers were called at 00.52am on Monday, the 22nd of July 2024 to the exit slip road between the southbound carriageway of the A316 at the junction with the M3 and the Sunbury cross roundabout.

Members of the public had discovered a black Talaria Sting e-bike and its two riders in the carriageway.

It had been involved in a collision with another vehicle which had failed to stop.

Both riders had catastrophic injuries.

21-year-old William Birchard died at the roadside, and 22-year-old Darren George died later that same day in hospital.

A black pickup truck was seen performing a U-turn and driving down the slip road towards Sunbury Cross roundabout shortly after the collision, and a black Ford Ranger Raptor registered to a local man was soon identified and found parked up close by.

Several hours later the owner, Alex Rose, contacted police to report his truck stolen.

This was a false report, and Rose subsequently pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice.

Rose, who had previously been a victim of burglary at his business premises, saw people moving around in the grounds of a college which backed onto his home on the night of the 21st of July, and believed they were a group of burglars.

At this point Rose called Charles Pardoe to meet up and they drove around in his black Raptor for over an hour. During this time, Rose was in phone contact with his girlfriend, Tara Knaggs, who remained at home while he searched.

It was here, shortly before 00.50am, that William Birchard and Darren George’s paths crossed with Rose as they rode into Sunbury on the Talaria Sting e-bike.

Having spotted the two men, it is believed that Rose mistook them for part of the group he had been searching for and pursued the e-bike along Green Street to the Sunbury Cross roundabout, exceeding speeds of 60mph in a 30mph zone.

In their efforts to get away, William and Darren drove the wrong way around the Sunbury Cross roundabout and onto the slip road travelling the wrong way towards the A316/M3.

Rose and Pardoe followed them in the Raptor, also travelling the wrong way, and collided with the bike, before fleeing the scene.

On 23 July officers tracked Rose to Birmingham airport, where he was about to board a one-way flight to Istanbul with his girlfriend, Tara Knaggs.

The flight had been booked just hours before, they had a single carry-on bag between them containing a few items of clothing and more than £4000 in cash.

Rose was arrested on suspicion of murder and Knaggs was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.

The following day, Pardoe and a second man, Samuel Aspden, were also arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder.
Rose, Pardoe, and Aspden were all later charged with murder, and Knaggs was charged with assisting an offender.

Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Inspector Debbie Birch, from the Surrey and Sussex Police Major Crime Team, said:

“Firstly, our thoughts and sympathies remain today with the family and friends of William Birchard and Darren George.

“Rather than call the police when he witnessed suspicious activity at the back of his property, Alex Rose summoned his friends to join him on a vigilante hunt through the streets of Sunbury. He intended to take the law into his own hands, and his actions have led to the tragic loss of Darren and William, two young men who should have had their whole lives still ahead of them.

“Following the collision, Alex Rose fled the scene, demonstrating a total lack of regard for anyone except himself. Telephone data shows he and his friends had their mobile phones on them and were in contact with each other the entire time, yet they all made a conscious decision not to call an ambulance or seek help for the two young men they left fatally injured on the slip road.

“Instead of taking responsibility for his actions, Rose attempted to flee the country, assisted by his girlfriend Tara Knaggs, who made their travel arrangements, paid for their flights, and travelled with him to Birmingham Airport where they were apprehended.

“I am grateful to the officers who have worked so hard to bring this investigation before the courts and secure these convictions.”