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Brother of James King, driver killed at Dartford Road in Sutton-at-Hone, 'overwhelmed' by support

The younger brother of a man killed in a car crash was left "overwhelmed" after more than 100 people gathered to pay their respects.

James King, 26, tragically lost his life after a two-car collision in Dartford Road, Sutton-at-Hone, on Sunday night.

Speaking at a memorial gathering, at the scene of the crash last night, Alfie King, 22, said he was "overwhelmed" by how many people had paid their respects to his older brother.

Mourners paying their respects to James King
Mourners paying their respects to James King
The driver has been named locally as Jim King. Picture: @Kent_999s
The driver has been named locally as Jim King. Picture: @Kent_999s

He said: "I didn't expect anything close to this. I knew he had his car group mates, but I thought only a couple of people would turn up."

A clearly shaken Mr King, said he was grateful for the tributes people had paid.

He said: "Thank-you to everyone for turning up, much love."

Along with friends and family, a convoy of more than 20 cars had made their way to the site of the crash.

The convoy had been made up of members of the Performance UK car club, a nationwide organisation of car enthusiasts, of which Mr King, who was known by the nickname of "Cheno", was a member.

A convoy of cars drive to pay tribute at the crash site of James King
A convoy of cars drive to pay tribute at the crash site of James King

Many people wore their car club hoodies with nicknames on the back, some chatting among themselves or hugging each other, while others just stood quietly, looking at the tributes and flowers left.

Andy Brown, a Performance UK member from Surrey, said he did not know Mr King well but he had come to pay his respects to a fellow car enthusiast.

He said: "Looking at the convoy of people you can see how much he [Mr King] was loved.

"We are like a family at the club, we all get together and we make fun of each other. There's a lot of different club members here too."

James Taggart a Performance UK Medway member said the fact there was a wide variety of different clubs represented, showed how close the car community was.

He said: "It's upsetting that something so sad like this has brought us all together, but this is what the car community is all about, it's not about racing, we have a passion for each other's cars."

Friends paid tribute to James "Cheno" King with signs on their cars
Friends paid tribute to James "Cheno" King with signs on their cars

Police are now urging witnesses to come forward after a crash between a silver Vauxhall Tigra and a dark-coloured Mercedes at just after 10pm on Sunday.

The Vauxhall driver, thought to be Mr King, died at the scene, while the Mercedes driver - who was 41 - and his 15-year-old girl passenger were treated at hospital for minor injuries.

The crash happened at the junction with Station Road near the railway bridge and officers from the police's serious collision investigation unit are investigating.

PS Scott Lynch said: "The traffic was fairly light at the time but we would ask anyone who saw either of the cars in the moments leading up to the collision to contact us."

Witnesses are asked to call the dedicated Serious Collision Investigation Unit appeal line on 01622 798538.

If you would like to leave a tribute for Mr King email dartfordmessenger@thekmgroup.co.uk or call 01474 564327.

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