A holidaying couple in their 20s died in a crash after being followed by a police car, an inquest was told.
Boyfriend and girlfriend Ryan Duffy, 24, and Ellie Marsden, 20, were killed when their white Citroen Berlingo van left a single-track county lane and collided ‘at speed’ with a large tree.
Their bodies were discovered in the Lake District on the morning of September 5, 2021, eight hours after a Cumbria traffic officer, PC Craig Stevenson, abandoned his pursuit of the vehicle.
Leakage engineer Mr Duffy suffered head injuries and Ms Marsden, a care assistant, sustained a punctured liver.
Mr Duffy was in the driver’s seat and Miss Marsden was in the passenger seat next to him.
Neither were wearing seatbelts, Carlisle Coroner’s Court heard.
The couple had been on the C3057 Long Rigg road, north of Brackenslack Lane, Kings Meaburn, and had been pursued by PC Stevenson.
‘There is a suggestion that an agent of the state was involved’ in the couple’s death, Assistant Coroner Joseph Hart told the jury.
Ellie Marsden, 20, sustained a punctured liver
Ryan Duffy, 24, suffered from head injuries
The couple had travelled together to Appleby, Cumbria, on the evening of September 4, 2021.
Mr Duffy told a hotel employee: ‘I just want to make her happy with a night away.’
The couple checked in to the Castle Hotel at 10pm before going for drinks at the Hare and Hounds pub in Appleby town centre, where they stayed until 12.40am.
Toxicology tests found ‘alcohol and other substances’ in both their systems.
PC Stevenson was on mobile patrol duty, parked 20 metres away, when he spotted the couple getting into the vehicle.
‘The van, being driven by Ryan, was seen to drive away and the officer decided to follow,’ Mr Hart said.
‘Just as the van started to move off, it went in the wrong direction up a one-way street.
‘At that point the officer decided to follow.’
Ms Marsden’s mother Kelly said her daughter had the ‘most pure heart of gold’
On the night of their death, the couple went to The Hare and Hounds pub in Appleby (pictured)
PC Stevenson lost sight of the vehicle for a time until he saw it again on Boroughgate in Appleby.
‘That police officer followed the van on to rural roads around Appleby,’ Mr Hart said.
‘At times, it seems he lost sight of the van.’
The officer did not illuminate his emergency blue lights and, after a distance, he stopped following the car.
‘He thought, in fact, the driver might have been aware of his presence,’ Mr Hart said.
PC Stevenson then notified comms control about his observations and returned to Appleby.
Mr Hart told the jury: ‘You will have to consider the movements of the police officer in Appleby town centre and the speed of the police officer when following the van.
‘You have to consider what that police officer was engaged in when pursuing Mr Duffy’s van.
The couple was killed when their white Citroen Berlingo collided ‘at speed’ with a large tree (File image)
The River Eden flowing through Appleby in Cumbria (File image)
‘You have to consider the officer’s decision to stop following the van and have to consider the circumstances, as far as you can, of the events leading up to the van leaving the road and hitting that tree.’
The inquest was attended by Ms Marsden’s mother and father, Kelly and Allan Kennedy, and Mr Duffy’s mother Karen.
They heard that emergency services were called at 7.30am on September 5, when the crashed van was spotted embedded in a tree amongst beech hedges.
Mr Duffy’s mother Karen Duffy read a ‘pen portrait’ of her son to the jury, in which she described him as a ‘larger than life character’.
He worked as a leakage engineer for United Utilities and loved outdoor pursuits such as camping and climbing.
‘Ellie was very special in Ryan’s life and herself was a beautiful young lady, both inside and out,’ said Mrs Duffy.
‘I feel very privileged to have got to know Ellie very well over the months they were together.
‘I only know that the world is a poorer place for both Ellie and Ryan not being in it. Two beautiful souls were taken far too soon.’
Ms Marsden worked as a care assistant for elderly people at Golborne Day Centre.
Her mother Kelly also paid a tearful tribute to her daughter, saying: ‘Ellie had the biggest and most pure heart of gold.
‘Ellie was the centre of my universe and our bond was unique.
‘Our world has been destroyed by the loss of my special daughter and best friend.
‘Ellie has been robbed of her life.’
The inquest, which is expected to last all week, continues.
