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Yonkers Police Department Sgt. Frank Gualdino, a resident of Putnam County who lived in Mahopac, age 53, was due to retire in nine months. He leaves behind a wife and two children, ages 14 and 20.
A visitation will be held Tuesday, Dec. 6, from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Whalen & Ball Funeral Home, in Yonkers. A funeral is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 7 from 11 a.m. to noon at Sacred Heart Church on Shonnard Place in Yonkers.
The crash happened around 3:35 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1 on the Sprain Brook Parkway overpass on Tuckahoe Road in Yonkers.
Upon arrival, first Responders observed a crash involving two sedans and an occupied Westchester County Bee-Line bus, Yonkers Police said, noting that the involved sedans were a 2020 BMW M5 and an unmarked Yonkers Police vehicle, a 2012 Chevrolet Impala.
Both sedans were occupied only by the operators and the bus had approximately 30 passengers, said police.
The operators of the BMW and police vehicle suffered devastating blunt force injuries to their heads and bodies and were transported to local area trauma centers in critical life-threatening conditions, according to police.
The operator of the bus suffered non-life-threatening injuries, and several bus passengers were treated at the scene for minor injuries. Police cordoned off the area and initiated an investigation into the accident.
Detectives from the Major Case Squad, Crime Scene Unit, and investigators from the Westchester County Department of Public Safety responded to the scene to interview subjects and witnesses, recover surveillance video, process forensic evidence, and reconstruct the accident dynamics.
The crash, including before and after, was captured on surveillance video.
A preliminary investigation has revealed that the bus and police cruiser were traveling westbound on Tuckahoe Road in parallel, and the BMW, driven by a 16-year-old boy from Yonkers, was traveling eastbound at a high rate of speed, police said.
"The BMW operator apparently loses control of the vehicle and swerves into the opposite lanes of traffic, first striking the police vehicle then the bus resulting in catastrophic impacts," Yonkers Police said.
Sgt. Gualdino died from his injuries at Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx.
The operator of the BMW is in critical condition at a local area medical center. Due to his age, his identity has not been released.
"He did not possess a driver’s license, only a learner’s permit that was obtained less than three weeks ago," Yonkers Police said. "He is also a student at a local private school."
“Our hearts are heavy as the City of Yonkers has experienced an insurmountable loss," Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano said. "Sergeant Frank Gualdino was a cop’s cop and the epitome of Yonkers' Finest.
"Yonkers is a close tight-knit community and when we lose one member of our law enforcement community, we all feel a sense of grief. Frank was someone we all knew and loved."
Yonkers PD Commissioner Christopher Sapienza said, “There are no words to assuage the pain and anguish Frank’s family and the Yonkers Police community are experiencing right now.
"We lost one of our best – Frank was a dear friend to us all and everything a father, husband, and cop should be. We miss him dearly, and will do everything in our power to support his family and each other. Godspeed, Frank!”
This continues to be a developing story. Check back to Daily Voice for updates.
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