A routine work detail turned tragic in Waltham, Massachusetts, when a police officer and a utility worker were killed in a series of events instigated by a driver's erratic behavior. The deadly incident, confirmed by Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan, unfolded on Totten Pond Road on Wednesday afternoon, as per NBC Boston.
According to documents from the office of District Attorney Marian Ryan obtained by NBC Boston, Peter Simon, a 54-year-old from Woodsville, New Hampshire, made an abrupt U-turn with his vehicle, hitting a Jeep, and subsequently, about a quarter of a mile on, collided with Waltham police officer Paul Tracey, 58, and a 36-year-old National Grid worker from Cambridge whose name has yet to be released. Both men succumbed to injuries sustained in the impact.
Ryan detailed the tragedy that Officer Tracey, who was working on a police detail assisting the National Grid crew, and the utility worker were among multiple victims of Simon's apparent rampage. Two other National Grid employees were also hurt in the chaos, with one of them being hospitalized after working in a hole at the site.
The harrowing string of events didn't end there; Simon's spate of vehicular destruction continued, ramming into at least two other vehicles before he abandoned his truck and fled on foot. NBC Boston reported that Simon encountered and pulled a knife on a responding Waltham police officer, proceeded to steal the officer's cruiser, and after crashing it on Winter Street, again attempted to escape on foot before being apprehended. Simon has been charged with two counts of manslaughter and armed robbery.
Simon is expected to be arraigned Thursday morning in Waltham District Court. Details on his legal representation were not immediately clear. An update from Boston.com also revealed the gravity of the incident and the charges that Simon faces, with the possibility of additional charges as the case unfolds.
