Boy (4) dies in Belfast mini-motorcycle crash

A four-year-old boy was killed today when a mini motorcycle he was travelling on collided with a car off the Shankill Road at…

A four-year-old boy was killed today when a mini motorcycle he was travelling on collided with a car off the Shankill Road at around 11.30 a.m.

The boy was named as David Spence from the Shankill estate.

Residents in the Shankill were in a state of shock following the tragedy at the junction of Berlin Street and Riga Street.

Cllr Chris McGimpsey, who visited the scene, said: "This is a terrible accident which has left this community in a state of shock and my sympathies are with this child's family.

READ MORE

"People have been complaining about children on these mini motorbikes whizzing around the area. It's a problem right throughout Belfast and elsewhere.

"Some of these kids ride up side streets at night with no lights at speeds of 25 to 30 miles an hour, so there always was the potential for this to happen," he said.

"In the wake of this tragedy, I am calling for a clampdown on the sale of these bikes. The people who sell these know they are going to kids living in streets like these which are not suitable for these vehicles."

The dead boy was riding a 50cc scrambler at the time.