A66 crash sufferer’s dad admits to attacking mourner delivering his son’s eulogy
Gye Worthy, 40, has pleaded guilty to assaulting a civil celebrant at the Middlesbrough funeral of his son Cole Worthy, 17, after the celebrant failed to mention his name during the eulogy for the A66 crash victim
Gye Worthy(Image: BACKGRID)
The dad of one of the A66 crash joyriders has admitted assaulting a civil celebrant while he was delivering the eulogy at his son’s funeral.
Gye Worthy, 40, jumped from his seat as the celebrant was speaking to the congregation at the funeral of Cole Worthy, 17, who died in the gang-related tragedy which claimed the lives of two police officers in August. Worthy has pleaded guilty to assaulting the 46-year-old, grabbing him by his clothing while making violent threats and then resisting police officers who came to arrest him.
A source close to the Worthy family said: “It was a shocking moment, even by Gye Worthy’s low standards, it left the whole funeral in a state of shock. The problem seemed to be that the celebrant had not spoken Gye’s name in his address soon enough for him.
Cole Worthy (right) with his friend Theo Ray, who also died in the A66 crash
“Other family members had been mentioned but he hadn’t and he was furious and attacked the poor man leading the service. The worst thing about it is that he made a day that should have been about his son into a day that was all about him.
It was appalling. ” Worthy appeared in an unscheduled hearing at Teesside magistrates on Saturday, September 26, where he confessed to three charges. He pleaded guilty to assaulting the celebrant, whose identity we are not disclosing, by beating him on September 9 in St Bede’s Chapel at Acklam Crematorium in Middlesbrough.
In addition, Worthy admitted to using threatening, abusive or insulting words and behaviour towards the celebrant with the intention of causing fear of potential unlawful violence. He also confessed to resisting arrest shortly after when the police were summoned by members of the crematorium team.
Worthy’s case was postponed until today – October 2 – but a sentencing date was set for October 27th and pre-sentence reports were requested. The celebrant was reportedly “shocked and shaken” by Worthy’s actions but did not sustain serious injuries from the incident.
PC Tom Clough was killed in the crash(Image: ncjMedia Ltd)
The celebrant, who regularly conducts services at Acklam Crematorium, declined to discuss his experience, stating: “It’s not something I’d want to comment on.”
Cole Worthy’s mother, Natalie McConnell, was heartbroken by the disruption to her son’s memorial service. Ms McConnell has been separated from Gye Worthy for some time, and both now have new partners.
Cleveland Police of PC Matthew Blades also died in the crash(Image: Cleveland Police/PA Wire)
Following the funeral service, Sarah Moloney, a friend of Ms McConnell, expressed gratitude to the mourners on her behalf. In a social media post, she said: “To everyone who came today for our Coley, thank you from the very bottom of our hearts.”
