Motorway death: Teenage victim Samuel Berkley was ‘talented footballer’
Written by News on 03/12/2017
A teenager who died in hospital after being found unconscious on the side of a motorway has been described as a "fun, outgoing and friendly" boy.
Police believe 14-year-old Samuel Berkley was involved in a collision with a car and say he sustained "unsurvivable" injuries.
Samuel was discovered on the hard shoulder of the M67 eastbound at junction 3 in Hyde, Greater Manchester, during the Friday afternoon rush hour.
He was taken to hospital where he died early on Saturday.
A grey convertible BMW, which had been travelling eastbound and stopped at the scene, was involved in the collision.
In a statement, police said the teenager was a talented footballer who had recently started playing for Hattersley FC.
He attended Audenshaw School in his local area and had recently become an uncle to his older brother’s new baby.
His family said they were heartbroken and hoped everyone would remember Sam for the fun, outgoing and friendly boy he will always be.
Mark Hunt, deputy chairman of Hattersley Football Club, said: "This is probably the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my role at this club and it is written with a heavy heart.
"Yesterday afternoon one of our under-15s Jets players was involved in a collision on the M67 and has sadly passed away in the early hours.
"The player is Sam Berkley who I have met several times and a nicer lad you could never meet, myself and everyone at the club would like to send our condolences to his family and will be here if needed by anybody."
Sergeant Lee Westhead said: "My thoughts are with the victim’s family who are being looked after by specially trained officers at this difficult time.
"Whilst we work to uncover how this has happened and piece together the moments before the collision, I am asking the public to help in any way that they can.
"If you were in the area at approximately 5.25pm on December 1 and saw a pedestrian on the motorway, or have dashcam images, please get in touch and share this information."
Anyone with information is asked to call Greater Manchester Police’s serious collision investigation unit on 0161 856 4741.
(c) Sky News 2017: Motorway death: Teenage victim Samuel Berkley was ‘talented footballer’
