The parents of a teenager who were incorrectly told that their son had survived a car crash before Christmas have addressed the situation for the first time.
Early in the morning of 13 December, Trevor 'TJ' Wynn, 17, was in a car which collided with another vehicle in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, along with two other teenagers. They were believed to be Joshua Johnson, 18, and Summer Louise Scott, 17.
Local police reported that Trevor had died while the former was hospitalised with serious injuries sustained from the crash, but in a shocking turn of events, it was actually Trevor who had survived.
Joshua had sadly passed away in the crash, it was revealed on Tuesday (6 January), with the mix-up meaning that Trevor's family spent the entire festive period mourning his death.
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However, Joshua's family believed that it was him in hospital as they paid several visits over the past few weeks.
Speaking in a new statement, the late teenager's family said: "From the moment we were told about the collision in December, ourselves and many loved ones have spent hours in hospital with who we now know to be Trevor.
"We never wanted him to be alone. Only those we shared this time with could understand how this went on for so long."
It is unclear how South Yorkshire Police misidentified the two men, with Trevor's identity only being revealed after he woke from a coma on 5 January, confirming his name and date of birth.
Speaking about the teen in intensive care, Jonathan Stoner, who was raising funds for Trevor's funeral, was perplexed by the revelation.
He admitted: "They have no idea how it has all come to happen,
"The police then picked up his mum, Charlotte, who then drove her to the hospital and confirmed it was, in fact, Trevor.
"They were planning to bury the body of another boy - how is that allowed to happen," he said.
Stoner organised a charity boxing even to cover Trevor's funeral expenses, believing he was dead, recalling the phone call he got from the family: "They rung me and said, 'sit down', so I sat down.
"They said, 'TJ's not dead' - I didn't know what to say," he said to the BBC.
Stoner now plans to hold another fundraising event for Joshua's family, after stating: "How do you even come to terms with that?
"You've had to tell all your family, all the grandkids, that TJ's passed away. Now how are you going to go up to them kids' faces and tell them he's alive?"
Joshua's parents say he was a 'loveable, gentle giant' who was 'ever so genuine in his care for others', speaking of their son's love for stock car racing in a statement.
They said: "Through stock car racing, we've built a massive circle of friends and we are so very thankful for the support they and others have shown us in the last few weeks and days,
"Neither us nor Josh's brother can imagine life without him, and as we adjust to this new world and only just begin our journey with grief, we ask that our privacy is respected."
South Yorkshire Police said that the force has now been referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) to find out how this mix-up happened.
Assistant Chief Constable Colin McFarlane said it was a 'huge shock' and acknowledged the 'additional trauma' caused by the mix-up.
"We are supporting Trevor and all the families through this and have engaged specialist agencies to help provide that support," he stated, adding that he's offered to meet both sets of parents.
An 18-year-old has been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and a 19-year-old has been arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice.
Both individuals remain on bail pending further enquiries.
Joshua Nair