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Mass. State Trooper Dies After Crash In Charlton

A Massachusetts state trooper died Wednesday after his cruiser was struck by a vehicle on the Mass Pike in Charlton.

State police Col. Richard McKeon said in a statement Wednesday that trooper Thomas Clardy had pulled over a SUV around noon for a traffic violation. While Clardy was processing the driver's information in his cruiser, another car, traveling at what witnesses told police was a "high rate of speed," swerved to the right, crossing three travel lanes before hitting the rear of Clardy's cruiser.

Massachusetts State Police trooper Thomas Clardy was killed Wednesday after a car crashed into his cruiser while he was stopped on the Mass Pike. (Massachusetts State Police)
Massachusetts State Police trooper Thomas Clardy was killed Wednesday after a car crashed into his cruiser while he was stopped on the Mass Pike. (Massachusetts State Police)

Clardy, 44, was pronounced dead at UMass Medical Center, police said. He was a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and had been with the state police since 2005.

"He was extremely well-liked by the men and women he worked with and had a reputation as a hard worker, a good trooper, and a great man," Col. McKeon said in the statement.

Clardy leaves behind a wife and seven children, ages 4 to 17.

Thirty-year-old David Njuguna, of Webster, was driving the Nissan Maxima that hit Clardy's cruiser. Police said Njuguna was transported to UMass Medical Center after the crash with serious injuries and that he was being "criminally summonsed at this point with negligent operation of a motor vehicle and failing to stay within marked lines."

Correction: An earlier post said that Clardy leaves behind six children, but updated information clarifies that he leaves behind seven children. 

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