A MAN who died after the car he was travelling in crashed following a pursuit by police has been named.

Adam Parker Wilkinson, 49, from Consett died when the car he was travelling in collided with a lamppost following a short pursuit by police.

The incident followed the report to police of two men acting in a suspicious manner near the Tesco Extra store, in Consett, shortly after 11.50pm last night (Monday June 23).

The men were believed to be in a black Volkswagen Bora Sport which had driven off from the scene, in Genesis Way.

Details of the vehicle were circulated and within minutes it was spotted by a local response officer in a Vauxhall Astra vehicle, who indicated for the Bora driver to stop.

His instruction was ignored and so the officer pursued the car.

A short time later the vehicle was found to have collided with a lamppost containing power cables as it headed down Ebchester Bank (the B6309), close to St Mary’s Convent, at 12.02am.

Mr Wilkinson, who was a passenger in the car, was confirmed dead at the scene.

The driver, thought to be in his 30s, was taken to the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle with what are thought to be minor injuries.

As inquiries at the scene were carried out the B6309 was closed to traffic in the vicinity of the accident until about 6am.

Due to the circumstances surrounding the death, which followed a police pursuit, the Durham force has referred the matter to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPPC).

Investigators from the IPCC are expected to decide in due course whether it will carry out its own inquiry.

Police are appealing for any witnesses to the crash, or anyone who may have seen the VW Bora on roads in Consett late last night.

They are asked to ring 101 and ask for the collision investigation unit.