YULEE, Fla. – A Nassau County deputy was killed Tuesday morning while chasing a man on foot across County Road 200 at Chester Road, according to Sheriff Bill Leeper.
It happened between 7 and 7:30 a.m. after U.S. Border Patrol agents questioning six people in a pickup truck at the Gate gas station asked two deputies to help. When one of the men Border Patrol were trying to question ran, the deputies followed, reported News 6 partner WJXT. The first officer made it across, but Deputy Eric Oliver was hit by a car. He died at the scene.
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"He died doing what he loved to do. He was a good police officer," Leeper said. "We were blessed to have him for the last seven years."
Oliver, 32, who joined the Sheriff's Office after serving in the Navy, leaves behind a wife and 6-year-old daughter. Leeper said he promoted Oliver from corrections officer to patrol deputy two years ago.
"Law enforcement is a tough job," Leeper said. "We just want to protect our community ... and tragic things happen and it's unfortunate, but that's the risk we take when we take the oath off office to service and protect the community, and Eric died doing his job."
The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating the accident that caused Oliver's death. The woman driving the SUV who struck the deputy stopped and was cooperating with troopers.
Other Nassau County deputies, K-9 teams and federal agents with the assistance of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office helicopter were involving with a manhunt for the man who ran from the scene. In the aftermath of the accident, five other people who were in the vehicle the Border Patrol were questioning also got away.
Leeper said the search was focused on the North Hampton area, where there have been sightings of suspicious people in the area.
Anyone who witnessed the crash or has information who could help find the men who got away is asked to call 911.
"We lost one of our own in a traffic accident this morning," Nassau County Emergency Management tweeted. "PLEASE be careful driving! Pay attention. Everything else can wait."
Early Impressions Development Day Care was on lock down Tuesday morning as authorities searched for a suspect in the crash, News4Jax learned.
This is the sixth Nassau County deputy killed in the history of the department. Chief Bailiff Lewis Hailey died in a crash 24 years ago in 1992.
The Fraternal Order of Police chapter in Jacksonville tweeted: "The Thin Blue Line in NE Florida just got thinner as we've lost a Brother from the Nassau County Sheriff's..."
All westbound lanes of CR 200 at the intersection remain blocked at 11:30 a.m., with traffic being routed through a business parking lot. A Home Depot and two strip malls are in the immediate area of the crash.
News4Jax has crews at the scene and will update this article throughout the day as more information comes in.