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One man has died and another is in custody following an accident which police have called “an incredible tragedy”.
An internal investigation has been launched into officers’ involvement in the lead-up to the collision that killed a 49-year-old man on Tuesday morning.
Police were following a 43-year-old man who they say was driving suspiciously at 4am near the Great Western Highway in St Marys, in Sydney’s west.
They lost sight of the man’s Holden sedan before locating him again after he picked up a Toyota hatchback with the 49-year-old man inside.
The man traveling in the Toyota received first aid, but later died.
Police found the driver of the other vehicle in the back of someone’s home after he allegedly fled the scene.
He was taken to Nepean Hospital and police hope to press charges against him once he has undergone drug and alcohol testing.
Deputy Commissioner Gavin Wood said the death was “an incredible tragedy”.
A man has died and police declared a critical incident on Tuesday following a crash in western Sydney that led to the closure of a major highway (pictured)
“We have an innocent 49-year-old man going to work; he’s not going to work, he’s not coming home, his family can’t see him,” he told reporters.
“So you talk about tragedies… for that poor man and his family and friends, his life has changed since this incident.”
Police never formally participated in a chase, but they were following the sedan after considering the driver was acting suspiciously.
But Wood did not elaborate when asked how the driver was acting suspiciously to pique officers’ interest.
The driver was disqualified from driving and was “well known” to police, he said.
The accident and the investigation into it will now be subject to an independent review after it has been declared a critical incident.
The Holden then collided with a silver Toyota Corolla hatchback (pictured), the driver of which was killed.
The process follows incidents where a person is killed or seriously injured in circumstances involving police.
“We have two young police officers doing their job, looking after the community, they formed that suspicion and that resulted in them following the vehicle,” Mr Wood said.
“The circumstances around the threshold of suspicion will form part of that critical investigation.”
