A trial at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court heard from the driver of a car involved in the collision

16:03, 01 Jul 2025Updated 08:40, 03 Jul 2025

Dean Barnes(Image: M.E.N.)

A driver involved in a crash with a stolen motorbike told police ‘it just happened so quickly’ in the wake of a teenager’s death, a trial has heard.

The woman told officers ‘I didn’t know how bad it was until I went back and saw him there’ as she was interviewed following Dean Barnes’ death in the collision, jurors heard.

Prosecutors said she did ‘absolutely nothing wrong’.

Dean, 16, was riding as a pillion passenger on a stolen motorbike, the jury was previously told. The bike crashed as its driver – Adam Norman, 36 – tried in ‘desperation’ to get away from the victim of a burglary chasing them, the trial has heard.

Callum Duncan, 28, stored three motorbikes in a shed at his home in Reddish, Stockport, it was said. Minshull Street Crown Court heard that in the early hours of January 24, 2023, three burglars broke into the shed.

Mr Duncan was woken by the noise and gave chase in his car as the trio – Dean, Norman and Alexander Riley – fled on the stolen bikes, jurors were told.

Dean died in a subsequent crash with the woman, it was said. Mr Duncan and Norman are both on trial accused of causing death by dangerous driving. They both deny the offence.

Norman and Riley have both admitted burglary, jurors were told.

Tributes for Dean Barnes in Reddish (Image: M.E.N.)

Prosecuting, Phil Barnes earlier said there was ‘no room for doubt’ that Dean was the third burglar. Mr Barnes said: “It would be wrong of any of us to presume Dean Barnes was an angel.”

As the trial continued on Tuesday (July 1), a police interview with a woman in a car was played to jurors.

No charges have been brought against her, the court heard and she was described by prosecutor Mr Barnes as ‘doing absolutely nothing wrong’ during the incident as she drove to work in the early hours of January 24, 2023.

The woman said she had been driving her usual route to work down Reddish Road, which leads into Gorton Road where the crash happened. She told officers an ‘off-road type bike’ emerged from a side street.

She added: “I was driving down Reddish Road when there was a bike, like an off-road type bike… it wasn’t a proper bike, came from out of the side streets and just pulled out right in front of me.

“He turned right and sped off down the road and then a second bike also turned from the same street, but he didn’t turn, he went straight across me and hit the left bumper of my car.

“I screamed and pulled over on the next street where I could, and then got out of my car and had a look and saw that the front licence plate was in half, and I didn’t know where the other bit was.

“I walked back to where I thought the crash was. It just happened so quickly, I didn’t know how bad it was until I went back and saw him there.

“By that time there was somebody with him on the phone to the ambulance.” The woman described hearing ‘a quick bang’ or ‘crunch’ at the moment of impact.

She told officers both bikes were going ‘extremely, extremely fast’.

The court heard that previously while fleeing on the stolen bikes, Riley turned right onto Gorton Road, but Norman tried instead to ride straight across.

Mr Barnes said previously: “Sadly for Dean Barnes, Adam Norman didn’t make it.” Dean fell following the crash with the woman and hit a parked car, jurors were told. He died ‘instantly’, it was said.

Norman, of no fixed address, but from Brinnington, Stockport; and Mr Duncan, of Salisbury Street, Reddish, both deny causing death by dangerous driving.

Norman; and Riley, of Blackberry Lane in Brinnington, Stockport, who is not on trial, have pleaded guilty to burglary, the jury was told.

Proceeding