A video posted to Instagram shows a driver deliberately knocking a cyclist from their bike, all for the sake of likes – and is said to have taken place in the same town in Surrey where a similar incident that left a cyclist with a broken leg in September was the subject of a police witness appeal.
The footage, and mirror copies of it, have been deleted by the photo- and video-sharing network since being posted at the weekend following complaints from users, according to Mail Online.
However, that hasn’t prevented the website from itself posting the footage, which was reportedly filmed in Ewell, near Epsom in Surrey.
The motorist, driving a Volkswagen, tails the cyclist along a line of cars parked to the left while a passenger films.
He then shouts, “Oi!” and knocks the cyclist from his bike, onto the car bonnet from where he falls to the ground.
The cyclist shouts, “What are you f*ck*ng doing, you pr*ck?” while the car occupants continue laughing before the driver makes off.
It is unclear when the footage was shot, but road.cc can reveal that in September, Surrey Police issued an appeal for witnesses after a cyclist in Ewell sustained a broken leg when he was knocked from his bike, apparently on purpose, with the driver failing to stop.
That incident took place on 10 September at 9.20pm, two hours after sunset.
The police appeal, under crime reference number PR/45180097393, said:
It is believed that the cyclist, believed to be a man in his 40s, was knocked deliberately from his bike, causing him to sustain a compound fracture to his right leg. The car failed to stop following the incident, which took place in Gadesden Road at the junction with Scotts Farm Road. The car was described as a black 4x4, possibly a Vauxhall with roof bars, although enquiries remain ongoing to establish this.
The cyclist was taken to hospital where he remains in a serious but stable condition.
Officers are investigating whether the collision is linked to a knifepoint robbery at the Epsom Downs Viewpoint, off Grandstand Road, which took place earlier that evening around 8.55pm.
We have asked Surrey Police whether they are investigating the incident shown in the Instagram video, and also whether they believe it may be linked to the one in September.