Kansas City police officer of 22 years dies Sunday of COVID-19, KCPD says
A 22-year veteran of the Kansas City Police Department died Sunday afternoon following a battle with COVID-19.
The officer, who was not identified in a news release, died at a hospital, according to Officer Donna Drake, a police spokeswoman. He had been assigned to the department’s Patrol Bureau.
The police department was reporting the loss of its own “with a heavy heart,” Drake said. She described the officer as dedicated.
Mayor Quinton Lucas said he was heartbroken to hear of the longtime officer’s death.
“Our officers are on the front lines each day and in the past year, we have seen a new threat from COVID-19,” Lucas said in a statement on Twitter. “I pray tonight for his family, our police department, and all who knew and served with him during his dedicated 22-year service to the people of Kansas City.”
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the coronavirus has taken the lives of 590 people in Kansas City, according to state data.
