Motorist appears in court following fatal crash on A1(M)

The collision happened at about 10.15pm last Friday, on the southbound side of the A1(M) near the Newton Aycliffe junction, and involved a silver Toyota Auris and a white Ford Transit van.

The woman, a passenger in the Auris, was taken to James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough, with serious injuries, but later died.

Two other male passengers in the Auris remain in hospital. One is seriously injured while the other is described as stable.

The female driver of the Auris and an 11-year-old boy were taken to Darlington Memorial Hospital following the collision. They have since been discharged.

The 34-year-old driver of the Transit van, Razwan Hussain, of Pilgrim Avenue, Dewsbury, was arrested at the scene and later charged with a number of offences.

He appeared at Newton Aycliffe Magistrates’ Court today where he faced one count of drink driving, three counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving, one count of aggravated vehicle taking and one count of driving without insurance.

He did not enter any pleas and was remanded in custody to appear at Teesside Crown Court on September 2.

Officers would like to speak to anyone who witnessed the collision, or saw the vehicles being driven beforehand.

They would also like to hear from anyone who may have dashcam footage of the collision, or the lead up to it.

Please contact Durham Constabulary on 101, quoting incident number 556 of August 2 with any information.