Cop Charged In Crash That Killed 6-Year-Old Tampa Girl: FL Troopers

TAMPA, FL — A Temple Terrace police officer was arrested Thursday in connection with an April 15 crash on East Fowler Avenue that left a 6-year-old Tampa girl dead, authorities said.

Officer Zachary Mason Krug, 25, was driving “at speeds in excess of 100 mph” when the crash happened, the Florida Highway Patrol said in a news release.

Troopers determined that his speed was a primary factor in the fatal crash.

Krug, a Temple Terrace resident, surrendered to state troopers at the Hillsborough County Jail on Thursday. He was charged with vehicular homicide and three counts of reckless driving involving serious bodily injury.

While behind the wheel of a Temple Terrace Police Department Ford Explorer on April 15, he was speeding in the center lane of East Fowler Avenue, heading west, as he approached North Drive around 4 p.m., FHP said.

At the same time, a Nissan Pathfinder was heading east in the turn lane at the intersection.

When the Nissan's driver, a 36-year-old Tampa woman, initiated a left turn, she drove into the path of the police vehicle and was hit by it, FHP said.

After impact, both vehicles rotated, coming to a stop in a ditch just to the north of the road.

Both drivers and two passengers in the Pathfinder, a 1-year-old girl and an 8-year-old girl, both of Tampa, suffered non-life-threatening injuries and were brought to area hospitals. The elder girl remains hospitalized, FHP said

The 6-year-old was also brought to a hospital, where she later died from her injuries.

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