ORLANDO, Fla.,None — An Orlando police officer was involved in a fatal crash just before 4:00am Monday morning at the intersection of Grand National Drive and International Drive.
AT THE SCENE: OPD Crash On International Drive
An Orlando Police Department spokesperson told Eyewitness News that Officer Neal Chase was headed south on Grand National Drive ( see map ) in his marked patrol car when the vehicle collided with a black, Chrysler sedan.
The Chrysler, driven by 46-year-old Jean Daniel Edmond, was traveling east on International Drive when the it was t-boned by the police car in the intersection. Edmond died at the scene.
Another police officer who was following the cruiser that crashed witnessed the accident and told investigators the Chrysler ran the red light.
"It happened at 3:57am, I don't think a lot of cars were in the area, the only other witness is the other officer," said Orlando Police Department spokesperson Barb Jones.
Neither of the police officers were responding to a call when the crash occurred.
"It's crazy that a cop would hit him," said the victim's nephew, Greg Edmond.
Edmond said his uncle, Daniel, was a hardworking man who made his living working at a Disney resort. Edmond and his passenger Max Jacques were headed home from working at Disney.
Even though investigators with Orlando police and the Florida Highway Patrol have a good eyewitness account of what happened, they are checking out other evidence from the scene to make sure it backs up what they have been told.
"The important thing is to find out what happened for all parties involved," said Jones.
Officer Chase and Jacques were both transported to Orlando Regional Medical Center with non-life threatening injuries.
WFTV
