A YouTuber was among three men arrested at the British Grand Prix on suspicion of causing thousands of pounds worth of damage to a Formula 1 car.
Lando Norris claimed an historic victory at Silverstone on Sunday in front of record 500,000 fans but the event was marred by two separate incidents of classic F1 cars being damaged on Friday.
In a statement, Northamptonshire Police said they had: ‘Received a report that a classic Formula 1 car on display at Silverstone Circuit during the British Grand Prix event had sustained several thousands of pounds worth of damage, which was alleged to have been caused by someone accessing the display stand and climbing into the vehicle.
‘Officers carried out initial inquiries and suspects were identified. Three men, aged 23, 25 and 27, were arrested on suspicion of causing criminal damage to a vehicle and taken into police custody.
‘Following a thorough investigation into the circumstances of the incident, all three men were released with no further action.’
It has since transpired that the three men were YouTuber AngryGinge and fellow content creators Chazza and SamHam, with the car being the 2019 Racing Point. All three deny causing criminal damage.
Images of AngryGinge, real name Morgan Burtwistle, being escorted out of Silverstone by the police had been posted on social media, as has purported footage of the incident itself.
AngryGinge, who recently clashed with former Manchester United striker Carlos Tevez at Soccer Aid, has since taken to TikTok to share his version of events.
The 23-year-old claims he was told the damage done was worth ‘£30,000’ and that the trio were held overnight at the Northampton Criminal Justice Centre, though he was not questioned before being released.
In a separate incident on the same day, CCTV caught a man stealing a steering wheel from a 1990 Leyton House F1 car that was at the Silverstone historic display and Eddie Jordan tribute.
‘Northamptonshire Police has released a CCTV image of a man they wish to speak to following the theft of a steering wheel from a classic Formula 1 car,’ a statement on Sunday read.
‘The incident happened at about 2.30pm on Friday, July 4, when the steering wheel was removed from a vehicle that was on display at the Formula 1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone in South Northamptonshire.
‘The man in the image could assist police with their enquiries so he, or anyone who recognises him, is asked call Northamptonshire Police on 101.
‘Please quote incident number 25000390674 when providing any information to make sure it gets to the right person as quickly as possible.’
The footage also shows the man in question attempt to steal a steering wheel from a neighbouring car – a 1990 Brabham – before failing and moving onto the Leyton House.
‘He’s been in a couple of others – he’s been around for about half an hour in the paddock,’ a member of Martin Stretton Racing, which runs the Leyton House car, said.
‘You can’t sell it. It’s a one-off – you’d get caught straight away. This is the original wheel from 1990 and you can’t put a value on it. A new wheel would be two-and-a-half grand, but it wouldn’t have the history of the original one. He’s just taken that.
‘We’ve got a spare car. We just borrowed its wheel. It’s a pain in the a***.’
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