Leyland man remains in custody after 20-year-old is killed in fatal Bamber Bridge collision

The 25-year-old is being held on suspicion of murder after a 20-year-old man, named locally as Ben Smith from Walton-le-Dale, was killed whilst riding an electric scooter along Station Road at around 1pm.

Police said Ben was hit by a Transit van outside Morrisons following reports of an altercation between the van driver and a cyclist moments earlier. Police say the van's wing mirror was struck and damaged during this confrontation.

The cyclist, aged 26 and from Bamber Bridge, has been arrested on suspicion of criminal damage. He was not injured in the incident.

Following the confrontation between the van driver and the cyclist, the van struck Ben who had been riding his electric scooter.

He was cared for by members of the public before nearby paramedics were alerted to what had happened.

The medics began treating him whilst 999 calls were made. Within minutes, two ambulances and a rapid response unit arrived at the scene.

An air ambulance was also mobilised, but the 20-year-old was taken by road to Royal Preston Hospital, where he later died from his injuries.

The van driver, a 25-year-old man from Leyland, was arrested a short time later and taken into custody where he remains under arrest this morning.

Police said enquiries remain at a "relatively early stage" and they are appealing for witnesses.

Det Chief Inspector Zoe Russo, of Lancashire’s Force Major Investigation Team, said: “This incident has resulted in the tragic loss of a young man’s life and my thoughts are with his loved ones at this distressing time.

"While we have made an arrest, our enquiries are very much ongoing and so I would appeal to anyone who witnessed what happened or who has CCTV or dashcam footage which may have captured the incident to come forward and contact us.

“We know that the collision followed a wing mirror being hit from the van involved just prior to it happening.”

Lancashire Police said a post-mortem examination to establish the cause of the victim’s death will take place in due course.

Anyone with information has been urged to contact police as soon as possible on 101, quoting log number 0545 of February 11.

Alternatively, independent charity Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at crimestoppers-uk.org.