Off-Duty Webster Officer Dies in Auburn Crash

An off-duty Massachusetts officer was killed in an early morning crash on Route 395 in Auburn, authorities confirm.

Webster police officer Michael J. Lee, 38, was driving a 2015 Toyota Tundra soutbound when he hit a 2012 Freightliner tractor-trailer that had been in the breakdown lane at 1:03 a.m. on Saturday, according to state police.

He died at the scene.

"It is with great sadness, and heavy hearts, that we must announce the passing of Officer Michael Lee," Webster police said in a statement on social media.

Describing Lee as an "outstanding" officer and SWAT operator, Webster police said that he "had a way of bringing a smile to everyone's face the moment he encountered them.

"We take solace in the fact that he is now watching our backs from above like he always did on the ground."

Officials say that the driver of the tractor-trailer, a 50-year-old man from Central Islip, New York, was inside the cab of the truck at the time of the crash, but was not injured.

The crash is still under investigation.

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