ST. LOUIS — A St. Louis police officer died after he was hit by a car on I-70 in north St. Louis Sunday morning, a police spokesperson said. He was rushed to a St. Louis area hospital after being critically injured.
The officer was fighting for his life at St. Louis University Hospital when he passed. He was SLMPD Officer David Lee,44, a man who served the St. Louis community for almost 20 years.
Police have a suspect in custody.
According to BackStoppers, Lee leaves behind a wife and children. He is a St. Louis native who graduated from Pattonville High School.
Officers with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department announced an officer-in-need-of-aid call over police scanners around 8:45 a.m. at the eastbound lane of Interstate 70 near E Grand Avenue.
At the time the officer was hit, he was setting up a system to alert drivers that there was an active scene, an SLMPD spokesperson said.
The driver who hit the officer stayed on the scene.
The eastbound lanes of I-70 were closed Sunday morning after the crash.
Nearly five hours after the crash occurred, dozens of St. Louis Metropolitan Police Officers gathered at headquarters for a procession to pay their respects to Officer Lee. The department is asking the community to keep Officer Lee's family, friends and everyone at St. Louis Police in your prayers.
5 On Your Side has learned about several crashes in the St. Louis area during what meteorologists called the heaviest rainfall of the day.