LAKEVILLE, MN : A head-on collision in Lakeville on Tuesday, 15th May 2018

A Minnesota State Patrol trooper and another motorist were injured Tuesday afternoon in a head-on collision in Lakeville, officials say.

Sgt. Mike Krukowski, 35, was driving his Chevrolet Tahoe squad vehicle south on Kenrick Avenue near 205th Street shortly before 4 p.m., when a northbound Chrysler minivan driven by 29-year-old Wesley Paul Briggs veered off Interstate 35, crashed through a barrier fence between the freeway and frontage road, and struck the trooper head-on, according a news release issued by the State Patrol.

Krukowski was initially pinned inside his vehicle, but he was freed by first responders and taken by ambulance to Hennepin County Medical Center with injuries that are not considered life-threatening, the State Patrol said. Krukowski, who lives in Oakdale, was wearing a seat belt.

Briggs was airlifted to North Memorial Medical Center with serious injuries, according to the news release. State Patrol officials do not yet know whether he was wearing a seat belt.

The cause of the crash, including whether drugs or alcohol were a factor, was under investigation Tuesday evening, though Briggs was reportedly driving at a high rate of speed. No other vehicles were involved in the crash, and no one else was injured.

Briggs, who lives in Lakeville, has 11 traffic violations on his criminal record dating back to 2008, including four for exceeding the speed limit by at least 15 mph and three for driving with a suspended license, according to Minnesota court records.

Source :
Minnesota trooper, motorist injured in head-on crash