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PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — A 24-year-old man is in critical condition at Rhode Island Hospital following an officer-involved crash in Providence, according to Police Commander Thomas Verdi.
Verdi says the Providence Police Accident Reconstruction Unit and Office of Professional Responsibility are both investigating the crash, which took place around 6 p.m. on Elmwood Ave.
A police cruiser and the moped were seen up on the sidewalk at the intersection with Bissell Street, and a stop sign was also knocked over.
Cell phone video viewed by 12 News shows a police vehicle driving behind the moped, both of which take a right turn. Squealing tires and a large crash are heard, though the moment of impact is just out of frame. The camera pans back and the driver of the moped is seen being thrown from the moped to the ground.
Asked if the officer driving the cruiser definitively struck the moped, Police Chief Hugh Clements says officers are viewing multiple angles of video in order to reconstruct the accident and determine what happened.
The police cruiser’s brush guard appeared bent out of shape as it was towed away.