Will Godley was forced to flee the funeral of one of the victims of the A66 crash in Middlesbrough after a group of balaclava-clad men confronted the media crew.
The GB News national reporter was covering the service for Jakub Matusiak, 23, one of the five young men killed in the collision with a police vehicle that also took the lives of two officers.
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Mr Matusiak was pronounced dead at the scene, along with Cole Worthy, 17, Theo Rae, 17, Makai Saddington, 18, and Michael Cahill, 23.
The two police officers in the marked vehicle, PC Matthew Blades, 37, and PC Tom Clough, 38, were also killed, bringing the total number of fatalities from the collision to seven.
Following the tragedy, several serious incidents occurred across Middlesbrough, including vehicles being deliberately driven into homes and violence linked to suspected organised crime.
GB News was on the scene at St John’s Church on Normanby Road as local schools were closed early over “safety fears” with hundreds of mourners descending on South Bank.
“The procession had been peaceful as mourners made their way on foot towards the church,” Will explained.
“We were filming the procession arriving at the church from a respectful distance alongside a number of other members of the media.”
He said “tensions quickly flared” when one member of the media was confronted and chased by about five men wearing camouflage clothing and balaclavas.
The men then turned their attention towards the GB News crew.
“As we had a camera, those individuals then turned on us as members of the media. So we were forced to flee the scene as well.
“While we were getting into the car, they were grabbing the door handles, trying to open the doors and asking what we were doing.
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Will suggested some may have been “unhappy with the media” because coverage had focused heavily on the two officers who died, rather than the five young men.
Today’s service follows a vigil held for Mr Cahill last week in Haswell, County Durham, which attracted criticism from MPs and police after several vehicles were set alight.
In anticipation of the funeral, which was expected to attract motorbike and quad-bike riders, schools and council officials were forced to make alternative arrangements for pupils travelling home.
South Bank Primary School was one of those which closed at 12pm, with head teacher Tammy Cooper saying the decision was taken to protect the “safety and wellbeing of pupils and staff”.
To help tackle the crime wave in Middlesbrough, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has handed Cleveland Police an extra £2million.
The cash injection comes after around 200 officers from outside Cleveland were drafted in to support the force’s crackdown on organised crime.
A Middlesbrough resident previously told GB News he and his family were living in “pure fear” as gang crime and anti-social behaviour have swept through the town.
“We’ve got this lawless society marauding around the town, and there’s no control over them,” the local said.
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