An off-duty Los Angeles police officer was killed Saturday when his vehicle rear-ended a big rig on the Foothill (210) Freeway in Glendora.
The officer was identified as Baldemar Sandoval, who worked out of the department’s Central Division, according to a tweet from Police Chief Michel Moore.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of Officer Sandoval, his Central Area family and the men and women of the Los Angeles Police Department during this difficult time. May God welcome Baldemar home,” Moore tweeted.
The Los Angeles Police Department’s Media Relations Division could not be reached to determine Sandoval’s age and his tenure with the police department.
The crash occurred at about 2:30 a.m. Saturday on the eastbound freeway, west of Grand Avenue, the California Highway Patrol reported. Paramedics dispatched to the location at 2:37 a.m. did not taken anyone to a hospital, according to a Los Angeles County Fire Department dispatcher.
The officer was the lone occupant inside his vehicle, according to the CHP. Moore later confirmed that he was an LAPD officer.
“With great sadness I share that earlier this morning a police officer on his way home from work was involved in a traffic collision on the 210 Freeway,” he tweeted. “I send my deepest condolences to his family, loved ones and friends as we mourn this tragedy.”
In Duarte, a person was killed Saturday in a collision involving a motorcycle.
California Highway Patrol officers were called to the westbound Foothill (210) Freeway at Buena Vista Street at 1:53 a.m., where they found the victim, CHP Officer Ramon Kendricks told City News Service.
The victim, whose age and gender were not immediately known, was pronounced dead at the scene.
It was not immediately known if the motorcyclist was the victim. Circumstances of the crash were not immediately available.
The westbound freeway was closed while the CHP investigated the crash, but all lanes were reopened by 6 a.m.
