THE Independent Police Complaints Commission will investigate the deaths of two men in a car crash after they were followed by police on the A435 in Studley.

Their black Seat Leon coupe collided head-on with a lorry coming the other way on a bend outside the village cricket club.

The driver, who died at the scene, was 19-year-old Daniel Paul Burnett, from Hollywood. Passenger Simon Blood, 33, from Hampton in Arden, died soon after arriving at the Alexandra Hospital.

The HGV driver, a 37-year-old man from Manchester, suffered minor whiplash.

Before the crash at about 12.30am last Wednesday, a police driver parked in Studley called the operations room to report the actions of the Seat. An area traffic car was called, which then pursued the coupe.

Because of the presence of the police car near the crash site, Warwickshire Police have referred the incident to the IPCC. The force's officers will work on the case and report to a senior IPCC investigator.