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At about 5:20 a.m. Monday morning, Compton station officers were pursuing a driver in a car that had allegedly been stolen, according to a release from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. The pursuit only lasted a few minutes before the chase was deemed too dangerous due to the rain and officers were called off. Despite that, the sergeant assigned to that station still ended up on the road shortly after the chase was cancelled, and wound up crashing into an iron fence at the intersection of Myrrh Street and Willowbrook Avenue in Compton. Rescuers found the sergeant unresponsive and transported him to a hospital, where he later died.
It is with heavy hearts we announce the loss of one of our own, 26 year veteran, @ComptonLASD Sergeant. #LASD pic.twitter.com/PdLrBRBGMA
— LA County Sheriffs (@LASDHQ) October 24, 2016
The department identified the victim as Sgt. Al Lopez via Twitter. According to City News Service, he was a 27-year veteran of the force who was transferred to the Compton station a year ago.
Sheriff Jim McDonald said at a news conference this morning that the crash may have been the result of a "medical emergency." An autopsy will be performed to determine the cause of death.
