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OPD officer flees when pickup truck catches fire after crashing into 408 toll plaza, police say

ORLANDO, Fla. — An Orlando Police Department officer was hospitalized after crashing a pickup truck into a toll booth on State Road 408 Saturday morning, Orlando police said.

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The truck, which officials say was Frederick Rolle's personal vehicle, crashed into a collapsible safety barrier at the toll plaza near Andes Avenue on the 408 before the Semoran exit around 6:20 a.m., police said.

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The truck catapulted into the guardrail and caught fire, prompting Rolle to get out of the truck and run away, police said.

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Police are investigating the crash as a hit-and-run, officers said.

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The crash closed the booths of the toll plaza, diverting traffic through the E-Pass lanes. The Florida Department of Transportation has waived tolls at that plaza until the booths were reopened.

Police said they found him and took him to the hospital to be treated for his injuries.

Raw video of pickup truck crash at State Road 408 toll plaza

Police did not say where they found the officer or if he will be charged since "the crash investigation is in the early stages," the department said.

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Rolle has been "relieved of duty" and an internal affairs investigation has been initiated into the incident, spokeswoman Michelle Guido said.

Rolle has been with the department since Nov. 2011.

He had recently been reinstated to his position with the Orlando Police Department after being dismissed in 2015 when he and another officer allegedly pursued a stolen car outside city limits and drove it back into Orlando to cover it up.

During an arbitration in 2016, Chief John Mina said the officers' actions ran contrary to city policy.

"This was an intentional and deliberate violation of policy and I think everyone can agree and they know that," he said.

Mina said that when the arbitration seemed to be leaning in favor of the officers, he decided to give them their jobs back to save the city money.