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An off-duty Philadelphia police officer who had just gotten off work died in a car crash just blocks from his home in Northeast Philadelphia overnight.
The two-car crash at Bustleton Avenue and Rennard Street in the Somerton section of the city happened just before midnight Thursday heading into Friday.
The officer, who has yet to be named, was pulled out of his Hyundai Sedan and pronounced dead just minutes later, Philadelphia police said.
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"The 50-year-old who was driving the Hyundai, who died as a result of this accident, is a police officer, an active duty police officer, who had just got done working the night shift," Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small said.
The 18-year-old driver of the other car, a BMW sedan, and the driver's 16- and 17-year-old passengers refused treatment and weren't injured, Small said.
The off-duty officer who died in the crash was a 27-year veteran of the force. "This is a real tragedy, he was driving home from work and he was just a few blocks from his home when this accident occurred," Small said.
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An initial investigation found that the teen was driving the BMW southbound on Bustleton Avenue when he struck the passenger side of the Hyundai as the off-duty officer went westbound on Rennard, Small said.
After striking the Hyundai, the teen's BMW struck a tree, Small said. The sedan had front-end damage.
Investigators "believe that speed was a factor," Small said.
A witness told investigators that the BMW was speeding down Bustleton Avenue at the time of the crash, Small said.
Small said the teenage driver didn't appear to be impaired and that neither alcohol nor drugs played a role in the wreck, Small said.
No charges were filed as of Friday morning as the accident investigation team continued to look into the wreck.
Friday's crash came near where another deadly crash took place along Bustleton Avenue earlier this year in which a car was split in half by the impact of a wreck.
