A brother and sister killed in a car crash involving a Manchester City footballer that left the sister’s teenage sons orphaned have been named by police.
Driver Kulwant Singh, 32, of Salford, and his sister Ravel-Kaur Singh, 37, of Cheetham Hill, who was a front seat passenger, died in the collision between a silver Mercedes and their red Nissan Micra on Bury New Road on Saturday night.
The Mercedes was driven by Courtney Meppen-Walter, 18, who plays for Manchester City and has played for England’s under-17 team. Both he and another teenage driver – James Conroy, 19, who was driving a grey VW Golf – were arrested by Greater Manchester police on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving. The pair have been released on bail until 23 November.
Ravel-Kaur Singh’s two sons were seriously injured in the crash at 10.15pm on Saturday, and have been orphaned as their father died some years ago, according to relatives. The family were returning home from a festival at the nearby Gurdwara Sri Guru HarKrishan Sahib Ji temple in Manchester when the crash happened.
Kulwant Singh’s wife and two young children were at the temple when the accident happened and he planned to return to take them home after giving his sister and nephews a lift. The impact of the collision at the junction of Bury New Road and Sherborne Street propelled the Micra 50 yards down the road.
Police said Ravel-Kaur Singh’s sons were in the rear seats of the Nissan Micra. Her 16-year-old son has a head injury that is not thought to be life-threatening. Her 17-year-old son has a serious head injury and is in a critical condition in Hope hospital, Salford.
Superintendent Neil Bhole, of Greater Manchester police, said: “Firstly, I want to extend my sympathies to the family and friends of those who have sadly died. This is an absolute tragedy and our thoughts are with them as they try and come to terms with what happened.”
He said liaison officers were with the family. “Because we have made arrests, I do not want to be drawn on what has caused this collision and I would ask for people’s understanding that we cannot talk about speculation or rumour. I do, however, want to reassure people that we have launched a thorough investigation that will establish all the facts.”
Bhole said he wanted to hear from any witnesses who saw the collision, or who specifically saw a silver Mercedes and a grey VW Golf being driven on Trinity Way or Great Ducie Street before the collision.
Meppen-Walter joined Manchester City in 2010 and has yet to play for the Premier League champions. The youth team player has been a regular in the England under-17 side.
Sources said he was driving a “low-powered” Mercedes at the time of the crash. It is understood that he earns less than £1,000 a week.
A spokeswoman for Manchester City FC said on Sunday: “It is a devastating tragedy for this family and also for the Greater Manchester community at large. Manchester City Football Club offers its heartfelt condolences to the family and all affected by the events of yesterday evening. The situation is subject to an extensive investigation by Greater Manchester police and therefore we are unable to make specific comment on the incident itself at this time.”
Police are appealing for witnesses to contact the Greater Manchester police serious collision unit on 0161 856 4742. One line of inquiry is that the footballer and his friend may have been racing each other shortly before the collision.
Balinder Singh, 19, a relative of the family, told the Manchester Evening News: “Kulwant’s wife has been left with a one-year-old son and a three-year-old girl. He was a loving father – he would help anyone. Ravel’s husband passed away a long time ago, so the children have lost their father and their mother now.”
He said everyone at the temple is supporting the family.
