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An off-duty Carmel police officer died after a motorcycle crash with a U.S. Postal vehicle in Kent.
Gary Pietropaolo, 29, was driving on Route 301 when he crashed around 4:30 p.m. Thursday, according to Kent Police Chief Alexander DiVernieri Jr.
DiVernieri said the Pietropaolo was traveling east on Route 301 when he collided with a U.S. Postal vehicle, driven by Mary Gosney-Hyatt, 57, of Holmes, as she was pulling out of a driveway.
Pietropaolo was transported by Kent Ambulance to Huestis Park where a helicopter was to land and transport him to Westchester Medical Center, the chief said.
While en route to the landing zone, Pietropaolo went into cardiac arrest and the ambulance was diverted to Putnam Hospital where he was pronounced dead, DiVernieri said.Route 301 was closed for several hours while an accident reconstruction was conducted by the members of the Kent Police Department, Putnam County Sheriff's Office and the Dutchess County Sheriff's Office. The investigation is ongoing to determine the exact cause of the crash, he added.
Pietropaolo, of Fishkill, graduated from the Westchester County Police Academy in 2011 and began his career as a police officer at SUNY New Paltz before joining the Carmel Police Department in March 2016, Carmel police said.
"The Carmel Police Department is extremely saddened by the loss of Officer Gary Pietropaolo," the department said in a statement. "Officer Pietropaolo was a talented young man who took great pride in being a Carmel police officer. His tenacity for law enforcement was unparalleled and admired by his peers.
"Gary was well liked and respected by all of his fellow officers and colleagues and will be sorely missed. The entire town of Carmel extends its deepest sympathies to his family, fiancée, and friends and wish them peace as they move through this difficult time."
Pietropaolo's father is a retired Yonker's police officer.
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