Counterterrorism officers are helping police investigate after seven people were seriously injured when a car drove into pedestrians in Derby city centre.
A man in his 30s was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, causing serious injury through dangerous driving, inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent, and dangerous driving, following the incident.
A black Suzuki Swift struck a number of people in the Friar Gate area of the city at around 9.30pm on Saturday.
In an update issued on Sunday morning, Derbyshire Constabulary said seven people were treated at the scene by ambulance crews before being taken to hospital.
They suffered a range of serious but not life-threatening injuries. The force added: “We can confirm that contrary to online speculation, no one died in the incident.”
A 36-year-old Derby man, who is originally from India but had lived in the UK for a number of years, was found and arrested a short time after the incident. He remains in police custody.
Later on Sunday, the force said that counterterrorism officers are supporting Derbyshire detectives.
Derbyshire Constabulary said: “Derbyshire detectives are leading the investigation with the support of Counter Terrorism Policing colleagues, which is common practice for an incident of this nature, and are keeping an open mind about the potential motives.
“Although counter terrorism officers are assisting us with those early investigations, this does not mean the incident is currently being treated as terrorism.”
Friar Gate was closed from the junction with Curzon Street/Cheapside up to Ford Street. The force said the road was expected to be closed for some time, with people urged to avoid the area.
A witness described the scene as “absolute carnage”.
“It was utterly horrific,” they told The Mirror. “People were laying on the pavement covered in blood and on the road.”
One person who arrived at the scene shortly after the incident also said there were “people on the floor”.
They told the Derby Telegraph: “It was such a frightening experience. We came around the corner and there was just people everywhere. We didn’t realise what had happened and then we slowly realised that it was something bad.”
Mark Lucas, 47, lives near Friar Gate and visited the scene at around 9:40pm on Saturday.
He said: “I ended up coming down with my son, and I realised it was a big incident – people were over the floor and there were a lot of police and ambulances.”
He described seeing paramedics trying to help two people on the floor, who appeared to be “seriously hurt” and “weren’t moving”.
The home secretary is being kept updated on the incident.
Education secretary Bridget Phillipson told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg: “My thoughts are with anyone that’s been affected by this, those who’ve been injured or hurt, and their family members at this really difficult time.”
She added: “The police are actively investigating. We don’t believe there is wider cause for the public to be alarmed.
“The police have made an arrest, and the home secretary is being kept updated on this.”
Derby North MP Catherine Atkinson said she was “deeply shocked” by reports of the casualties.
Posting on Facebook, she said: “My thoughts are with those injured and I’m grateful to our emergency services.
“Please follow police advice and avoid the area. Anyone who has information should contact them as soon as possible.”
Baggy Shanker, the MP for Derby South, said his thoughts are with “everyone who has been affected and with their loved ones”.
In a statement, Derbyshire Constabulary said: “Although we know this will be alarming, we would like to reassure people that we do not believe there is an ongoing risk to the public.”
Chief Superintendent Emma Aldred, who leads policing in Derby, said: “Firstly I would like to send my best wishes to the people who were injured, their friends and families, and to the public who witnessed what will have been a very traumatic thing to see.
“I know this incident will have sent shockwaves through our communities but I would like to reassure people that we have a dedicated team of detectives working on it.
“Thanks to the fast actions of officers, working on eyewitness information from the public, we were able to quickly arrest the suspect in the city just a few minutes after the incident took place.
“I also want to thank the members of the public and staff from local businesses in Friar Gate, who helped officers with first aid in the immediate aftermath of the incident.
“We will provide updates to the public as quickly as we can, but sometimes those updates take a bit of time due to the complexity of the incident we are dealing with.
“I’d also like to thank business owners, their staff, and people whose cars are stuck within the cordon for their patience while we continue our work at the scene.”
Anyone with information is urged to call police on 101, quoting incident 1131 of 28 March. The independent charity CrimeStoppers can also be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111.
