Death of much-loved Sutton barber remains unsolved

Juan Veiga-Vidal, described as "a good man who was loved by the local community”, sustained fatal injuries as he walked 150-yards from Vidal’s Barbers to his car on Courtenay Road on November 17, 2022. 

The incident which caused his injuries was not caught on CCTV, there were no eyewitnesses and a local who was standing 10 metres away said he did not hear or see anything. 

But other residents heard a crash and rushed out of their homes to find Juan lying injured in the middle of the road – he was pronounced dead less than an hour later. 

On Monday (September 16) South London Coroner’s Court heard that despite an extensive investigation police could only speculate about how Juan was injured. 

Senior Coroner Sarah Ormond-Walsh dismissed theories that he may have just fallen over and concluded that Juan was struck by an unidentified moving vehicle. 

Juan grew up in Northern Spain as one of nine siblings but lived in Sutton with his partner Catalina. 

He was described as “young for his age” and was “the heart and soul” of Vidal’s Barbers on London Road. 

One of his brothers, Jesus, said: “He was my closest brother and friend. I was honoured to know him and miss him dearly.” 

Catalina said: “I miss him so much. He was my other half and I won’t feel whole without him.” 

Juan ran Vidal's Barber Shop on London Road, opposite the Nonsuch Inn Wetherspoon pub (Image: Richard Johnson) On the day of his death Juan spoke to his sister on the phone as he closed the shop then left to walk to his car on Courtenay Road at around 6pm. 

The first 999 call was made at 6.14pm after Juan was discovered in the middle of Courtenay Road and by 7.02pm Juan was pronounced dead. 

Catalina, who turned up at the police cordon looking for her partner, said she was “crushed” when she was told Juan had died. 

“I felt so alone and scared. In disbelief. Juan was a good man who was loved by the local community,” she said. 

“To this day I still expect Juan to walk through the door at any point.” 

Emergency services at the scene (Image: Richard Johnson) A forensic pathologist gave Juan’s cause of death as severe chest and spinal injuries consistent with a road traffic collision but noted that leg injuries expected in collisions were absent. 

PC Archer, a forensic collision investigator, told the court he found plastic debris from a vehicle which he believes was created in the collision. 

There were scratch marks next to Juan’s body and on the pavement nearby were tyre marks in a puddle consistent with a van performing a three-point turn, PC Archer said. 

One theory presented was that Juan was hit by a van as it performed that manoeuvre, though PC Archer said “I am speculating a lot”. 

A van would also explain the absence of injuries to Juan’s legs as the impact would have been higher up, PC Archer said. 

DC Sekon, also giving evidence at the inquest, was asked why police weren’t able to identify a vehicle. 

DC Sekon said: “We didn’t have much CCTV. We had two Ring doorbell camera clips but unfortunately there’s a gap. They often record only when there’s movement so there’s a gap of 40 seconds between them. We believe that 40 seconds [between 6.09 and 6.10pm] is where the collision happened.” 

He told the court it is “extremely rare” in London that police are unable to identify an eyewitness or CCTV for a crash. 

DC Sekon added that he was surprised that a resident who was standing 10 metres away from the incident smoking said he did not see or hear anything. 

Emergency services at the scene on Courtenay Road (Image: Richard Johnson) Ms Ormond-Walsh said: “A lot of the evidence is speculation I’m afraid. Nobody has said they have seen it. Everybody is trying to draw it together with the circumstantial evidence.” 

Giving a narrative verdict, Ms Ormond-Walsh said: “Soon after 6pm on November 17, 2022, the deceased was struck by an unidentified moving vehicle outside 9 Courtenay Road, Worchester Park.

"He sadly died at the scene from his injuries. My conclusion is a road traffic collision.”