Father of teenager, 17, killed in A66 Middlesbrough crash faces jail today after attacking celebrant at his own son's funeral

Published: 01:37 BST, 2 October 2026 | Updated: 01:37 BST, 2 October 2026

The father of one of the teenagers killed in the A66 Middlesbrough crash faces prison after attacking the celebrant at his son's funeral.

Gye Worthy is alleged to have become angered when Paul Maull failed to mention him in a eulogy for 17-year-old Cole - but did not forget the teenager's step-father. 

Worthy, 40, is accused of shouting insults before assaulting the celebrant and obstructing police officers called to deal with the disturbance at Teesside Crematorium on September 9.

Cole's mother, Natalie McConnell, was 'devastated and shocked' by the disruption to her son's memorial, a source close to the family said.

Ms McConnell has long been separated from Worthy and both now have new partners.

Worthy, from Acklam, Middlesbrough, is the boss of his own specialist lifting company, which operates on offshore platforms.

His semi-detached £200,000 home recently suffered serious damage in a criminal act currently under investigation by Cleveland Police.

Worthy, 39, faces prison after attacking the celebrant at the funeral for his son Cole

Theo Rae, left, and Cole were both killed in the A66 Middlesbrough crash

Worthy's home was attacked just before Cole was killed during the crash on the A66

Cole was then killed within minutes of his father's home being attacked, alongside Jakub Matusiak, 23, Makai Saddington, 18, Michael Cahill, 23, and Theo Rae, 17.   

Police said all five had links to organised crime and had been trying to flee police in a VW Passat when they drove the wrong way up the A66 into a police vehicle. 

Two police officers, PC Matthew Blades, 37, and PC Tom Clough, 38, were also killed in the crash on Saturday, August 22.

The incident was blamed on a tit-for-tat gangland turf war over the supply of drugs on Teesside.

There is no suggestion Worthy is linked to organised crime. 

Cleveland Police said previously that Worthy had been charged with common assault, public order and obstructing police.

He is due to appear at Teesside Magistrates' Court on Friday.