
Thousands of mourners have gathered in Bradford for the funeral of the four young friends who were killed when their car hit a tree.

Murtza Chaudhry and Arbaaz Hussain, both 21, Zeeshan Khalid, 20, and Tayyab Siddique, 22, died on Thursday after being pursued by police.

The funeral at the Manningham Mills Association in Bradford drew large crowds with flowers laid in tribute and hearses decorated with the words 'Brother' and 'Son' driven into the packed field where traditional prayers were said.

The police watchdog, which is now investigating the incident, said that the BMW the four men were travelling in was being followed because it was moving at speed.

Mourners gather at the Manningham Mills Association in Bradford ahead of the funerals of the men killed in the crash

Mourners at Saturday's funeral look on as the four hearses arrive at the Manningham Mills Association in Bradford

Hundreds of mourners gather ahead of the funeral after the tragic road smash in Bradford on Thursday morning

Before the ceremony, Imran Hussain, MP for Bradford East said he was born and brought up in the area.

He said: 'I knew the young men and I know their families. The whole community is absolutely shocked and continues to be shocked. This is an extremely tragic loss of four very liked young men and the whole community is in mourning.

'People have turned up in their thousands to stand with the families. The whole community has come together, to stand together and provide support for each other in these difficult times.'

Speaking to the crowd, Imam Mohammed Asim said: 'The whole of Bradford has been rocked.'

He pointed to a number of similar incidents involving car crashes in the city and implored families to stop young men driving fast cars at speed.

He said: 'We cannot let this happen again. Their whole lives were ahead of them. But you see what one moment of madness can do?'

A local resident, who said Toller Lane, the location of the crash, attracts fast drivers, commented: 'I have seen the footage. I think the car was going extremely fast.

'If there was a car on the other side he would have had a head on collision because he was on the wrong side of the traffic cone. I think it must have been at least 80 or 100mph.'

Neighbours reported hearing a huge bang and the video footage, posted on social media, showed the front of the grey BMW obliterated by the impact.

At the family home in Bradford, Mr Chaudhry's heartbroken father Istfar Iqbal, 40, confirmed that his 'polite and quiet' son was among the dead.

Mr Iqbal, who raised his son alone from the age of 11, said: 'I woke up about eight o'clock.

'I came downstairs and my mum was crying. She said, 'Your son is dead'. I said, 'What are you talking about?' I don't know how it happened. I don't know what he was doing with friends at that time in the morning.

The hearses decorated with the words 'brother' and 'son' arrive at the funeral as a large crowd of mourners looked on

The Bradford funeral of the four young friends who died when their car collided with a tree on Thursday morning

Flowers are left by mourners ahead of the funerals of Murtza Chaudhry, Arbaaz Hussain, Zeeshan Khalid and Tayyab Siddique

Mourners look on as the hearses arrive at the Manningham Mills Association in Bradford on Saturday

The hearse drives in to the field in Bradford as traditional prayers are said at the four men's funeral on Saturday

'Normally he would be home before midnight. I would always keep an eye on him. I can't believe what has happened.'

Mr Chaudhry's cousin Faisal Ali, 23, told the Bradford Telegraph and Argus: 'He was a young lad enjoying life. He was an outgoing lad.

'He had just come out college, he had his life ahead of him. I'm devastated.'

Mohammed Asim said on social media he was 'gutted' to hear of Arbaz's death.

He said: 'I grew up with him through primary school and always seen him about in my local, lived a few doors away.

'Sad, 21 and gone, from what I knew of him, how he was with me, he was a good lad.'

Flowers on one of the hearses are arranged to spell the word 'brother' as the funeral gets underway in Bradford on Saturday

Hearses are decorated with the words 'brother' and 'son' as hundreds of mourners look on in Bradford on Saturday

Mourners look on as the four hearses arrive at the Manningham Mills Association in Bradford on Saturday

Tributes left by mourners, ahead of the funerals of Murtza Chaudhry, Arbaaz Hussain, Zeeshan Khalid and Tayyab Siddiqu

A hearse decorated with flowers spelling out 'brother' arrives at the funeral on Scotchman Road in Bradford on Saturday

Hundreds of mourners look on as the four hearses arrive at the field on Scotchman Road in Bradford on Saturday

In a statement released on Friday, the police watchdog said: 'We understand at this time that the grey BMW 1 Series car in which they were travelling was pursued for a short time by an unmarked West Yorkshire Police car, due to excessive speed before the crash.

'All four men died at the scene.

'Their families have been informed and family liaison staff from the IOPC are supporting the families involved.'

The police watchdog also confirmed that there was 'no indication' that the police vehicle made contact with the car prior to the accident.

The IOPC also said that there was approximately one minute between the BMW being spotted by the police and it colliding with the tree at around 5.30am on Thursday, according to the evidence it has analysed.

21-year-old Arbaz Hussain (left) and Tayyab Siddique, 22, (right) have also been named as among the dead

Two of the victims of the crash have been named as Murthza Chaudhry, 22 (left) and Zeeshan Khalid (right) by the Independent Office for Police Conduct

The wreckage of the grey BMW was covered in yellow tarpaulin following the early-hours crash