At 4.48pm on Christmas Day the Police were called to reports of an altercation outside The Gate Street Bar and Grill on the corner of Moorgate Street during which a man in his 30's was struck by a Toyota Land Cruiser.  The man who we can now name as 37-year-old Kirk Marsden from Blackburn, suffered multiple serious injuries.  Kirk was taken to Royal Preston Hospital where he sadly died in the early hours of Boxing Day.

Our thoughts remain with Kirk's family who are being supported by specially trained officers.

Following enquiries, two men have been arrested on suspicion of murder and remain in custody at this time.  They are a 58-year-old man of no fixed address and a 31-year-old man from Bolton.

We have a dedicated team of officers assigned to this case who have been carrying out enquiries in the local area since Christmas Day.

DCI Bryony Midgley, from our Force Major Investigation Team, said "This incident has led to a man losing his life, first and foremost our thoughts remain with Kirk's loved ones.  The investigation team is making progress with their enquiries and have since recovered a Toyota Land Cruiser from a car park in Brindle Street, Blackburn.  We know that following the fatal collision, the Land Cruiser turned right onto Livesey Branch Road.  I would ask anyone with CCTV, dashcam or doorbell footage covering the area between Livesey Branch Road and Brindle Street on Christmas Day to check their footage and if they have captured a Silver Toyota Land Cruiser between 4:48pm and 5pm to make contact.  

This is being treated as an isolated incident and we know there was an altercation in The Gate prior to the fatal incident outside.  I would ask any witnesses, we haven't already spoken to or anybody with mobile phone footage to also make contact with my team.  I am aware that news of this incident will cause some concern in the community.  I'd like to reassure everyone that we have increased reassurance patrols in the area".