IMPORTANT - Disturbing incident in W12 yesterday afternoon

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Spooner

Active Member
Hi All, I have not posted a thread before but I needed to find out if any of you have had a similar experience to this in West London.

Yesterday afternoon on Sheperds Bush Green on my regular cycle home from work, just off the Holland Park Roundabout I suddenly became all too aware of a car driver nearing dangerously close to my back wheel on my left handside in speeding traffic. I of course shouted the usual exclamation and swerved away from him across the lane I was in but when I turned to catch the driver's eye it was obvious he was fully aware of what he was doing and he was smirking. He then pulled up alongside me on my left as I continued along Sheperds bush green and then shouted in heavily accented English about how dangerous it was for cyclists to be on the road, that I shouldnt be there and that how he'd hate me to be the next one killed...
If we ignore the slightly creepy serial killeresque final statement, and his clear intent to strike fear into me, what makes this event seem more than just the usual rough and tumble of cycling in London was that I have seen this man before. I recall a similar event that happened to a cyclist that was in front of me on the Hammersmith Road sometime ago and it was the same man. He seems to get some kind of thrill out of either playing with cyclists' lives on the road or of the inevitable confrontation that ensues.

He's a balding man, late 30's or early 40's and speaks in heavily accented English that sounds very much like italian to me. I can't be specific abou the car but in both cases is was a silver saloon, either a Nissan or maybe a low to mid range Merc.

I was just wondering if anyone on this site have had any run ins with someone who fits this description lately or whether I have just been unfortunate to have met him twice. I thought about going to the Police with this but will they really be interested?

Keep you're wits about you in West London is all I will add. This man is seriously odd and dangerous.

Regards
Spoons
 

srw

It's a bit more complicated than that...
Crimestoppers. 0800 555 111.
 

fossyant

Ride It Like You Stole It!
Location
South Manchester
Report it, you never know someone else may have done and got the reg. The more intelligence the police have, the more reason to act.

TBH had one or two drivers like that - they usually get a lot of verbal back, followed by a smack to their wing mirror. You do, of course have to look for a way out, but I've twice had drivers 'drive' at me for no reason. One was reported, and had 'history', so it's worth doing. Time/location important if you don't have the reg.
 

Sandra6

Veteran
Location
Cumbria
I think I would be calling the police and reporting him for intimidating behaviour or something.
I had a guy mess with me once before - not in high speed - he just crawled alongside me, then blocked my path a couple of times and acted like a total div, but it was quite scary all the same. I wish I'd reported him.
Hope you don't run into this guy again though.
 
OP
OP
S

Spooner

Active Member
It was around 4.05 - 4.15pm. I'm usually around there at about 6pm but I was early yesterday. I know I really should report it.

the road wasn't especially busy then and the traffic was moving fairly fast so there will no doubt be CCTV footage of it that won't be concealed by other vehicles though proving there was malice there won't be easy. I can't help but think Plod will be completely disinterested, especially with the circus in town right now.
 
I've called 101 a few times (non bike related) to report things and they take everything seriously - or at least they appear to.

If you have his details, it will be logged, then heaven forbid anything happens to you or any other cyclist, this will be taken into account to hopefully avoid any your-word-against-mine rubbish.

If you are lucky, you'd the the 3rd/4th whose reported him and will hopefully have him paid a visit BEFORE the above.
 

Graham

Senior Member
I'd be interest to know what effect reporting incidents has. Is it that numerous calls about the same driver will prompt the Police to take some action?

If the Police take action on the fourth report and prosecute, I doubt the first three could be taken into account/evidence in prosecuting the driver. I doubt it would help in any 'your word against mine' situation either. Is there a criminal lawyer (meaning a lawyer who specialises in criminal law) out there who could tell us?
 

fossyant

Ride It Like You Stole It!
Location
South Manchester
I'd be interest to know what effect reporting incidents has. Is it that numerous calls about the same driver will prompt the Police to take some action?

It goes down as intelligence, so when the police do have enough evidence, the 'list' helps. They actively told me to go for an investigation rather than log it, in the end it was 'your word against his' and it seemed me raising a hand (no fingers) was enough for this loon to take it aggressively and drive a car at me a few times. The police said this now goes against the driver as intelligence, and that the 'vehicle' was known to them. I'd guess if they get enough information and some good evidence, that's when they'd have them. The guy did get a 'visit' so he'd know the police were on his case.
 

trsleigh

Well-Known Member
Location
Ealing
It was around 4.05 - 4.15pm. I'm usually around there at about 6pm but I was early yesterday. I know I really should report it.

the road wasn't especially busy then and the traffic was moving fairly fast so there will no doubt be CCTV footage of it that won't be concealed by other vehicles though proving there was malice there won't be easy. I can't help but think Plod will be completely disinterested, especially with the circus in town right now.

Uninterested, they should be disinterested.
However I often go through that bit on my commute home at that approx time so I'll keep a sharp lookout for an exceptional nutter.
At the end of the south of Shepherds Bush Green do you take a right for Uxbridge Road? I've had more stupidity at that junction than anywhere else on my journey.
 

Drago

Legendary Member
Without a vehicle index there's not much for them to be interested in. No shortage of meatheads in mid sized saloons out there.

Without a crime DPA prevents then speculatively checking CCTV for a vehicle index, if there is any in the area.
 

slowmotion

Quite dreadful
Location
lost somewhere
Shepherds Bush Green is just round the corner from me. I would have thought that there must be loads of TV cameras covering the area. You really should report it to the police. There's a faint chance they might get the reg. from film footage. Faint, but it's worth a try.
Good luck.
 
OP, that is scary, but I'd do nothing about it at this stage. I know the roads you write of. I imagine you were crossing the south side of SBG heading west. It is a fraught bit of road for pedestrians, motorists and cyclists alike. Multi-lane, One-way and with road users trying to get into lane for the Goldhawk road or North or South options. Lots of lane markings and sometimes a bit of a race track. Harum-Scarum stuff.

It appears from your description that the car was to your rear and left. I try not to swerve in fast traffic, but I understand you were concerned for your safety. If you sweved away from him and he was on your left, then you moved right. If that was the lane you were in, that suggests that if he was on your left, he was initially in the lane to your nearside, rather than your lane. I don't get too concerned about cars coming close to me in the lane to my nearside. In London, it is a common thing.

It appears that you shouted at him before he shouted back. I tend not to shout in London traffic, but many find it helps. He may have been quite unaware that he was driving too close to you and just shouting something back in defensive ire. It does happen. I wasn't there, so I cannot say.

You did well to hear so much of his comments in his heavily accented English, shouted at you from a moving car in what you refer to as speeding traffic. You seem to have a pretty good grasp of both what he said and the meaning he intended to convey. He did well to get so much into the short distance along SBG.

You were there and I was not, but nothing you describe smacks of a clear intent to strike fear into another road user. Perhaps he was new to the UK and finding our traffic systems hard to master. Perhaps he was surprised to be shouted at.

The thing about having seen him do the same thing previously is a little odd from the reader's perspective. It's not clear whether you want to report him for what he did or for what you appear to perceive as the serial nature of his behaviour.

There are so many possibilities here that I'd take it as a potentially nasty confrontation avoided and learn some valuable lessons from it. Your recall seems to have been strong in some areas and utterly lacking in the vital ones. This is not uncommon when we're under stress, so it's no big deal.

Next time get the registration, the make and model of the car and the time.

Also, I'd try to avoid swerving every time a car comes too close to you while negotiating SBG on a bicycle in speeding traffic. You will end up dismounting painfully.

I'm sorry you had a shitty experience riding in West London. I'm glad nothing came of it and you weren't hurt.

In this instance, I'd do nothing.
 
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