One of the five young men killed in the devastating A66 crash had previously admitted assaulting police officers, court records have revealed.
Makai Saddington, 18, was among seven people who died in the collision on the A66 at South Bank, Teesside, in the early hours of Saturday.
Police officers PC Matthew Blades, 37, and PC Tom Clough, 38, were killed when a Volkswagen Passat travelling the wrong way along the dual carriageway collided with their marked armed response vehicle.
Makai Saddington, 18, was travelling in the Passat alongside Cole Robert Worthy, 17, Theo Rae, 17, Michael Robert Cahill, 23, and Jacob Matusiak, 23. All five were pronounced dead at the scene.
Makai Saddington, 18
(Image: SOCIAL MEDIA)
Court records have now shown that Saddington had appeared before Teesside Magistrates' Court on a number of occasions in the months before his death.
An HM Courts & Tribunals Service spokesperson said Saddington pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer following an incident in Middlesbrough on June 9.
He also indicated a guilty plea to causing racially aggravated alarm or distress to another police officer.
Tributes at the scene of the fatal A66 crash
(Image: NORTHERN ECHO)
Saddington entered the pleas when he appeared at Teesside Magistrates' Court on July 17 and was given a 12-month conditional discharge.
Records also show that earlier this year, on April 1, he appeared before the same court and admitted three counts of assaulting PC John Walker.
Those offences took place in Middlesbrough on October 11, 2025.
Pc Matthew Blades, 37 (right), and Pc Tom Clough, 38, (left)
(Image: FAMILY)
Saddington was ordered to pay a total of £240 in court costs and was also made subject to rehabilitation requirements.
His previous convictions have emerged as investigations continue into the circumstances surrounding Saturday's collision.
Cleveland Police had begun pursuing the Passat after receiving intelligence linking it to "numerous incidents", according to the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
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The vehicle, which is believed to have been using cloned registration plates, was pursued for just under seven minutes before it entered the A66 at South Bank and travelled against the flow of traffic.
Police abandoned the pursuit and remained on the correct side of the carriageway.
Around 10 seconds later, the Passat collided with the armed response vehicle occupied by Pc Blades and Pc Clough, who had not been involved in the original pursuit but had been called to assist with the search.