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The partner of Constable Mia Lay has spoken on behalf of her grief-stricken family a day after she was killed in a car crash while on duty, describing the 20-year-old as “the happiest girl I had met”.
Fellow officer Daniel Vasquez visited the Redfern site on Saturday where Lay was killed when the marked police car in which she was a passenger crashed about 1.30am on Friday. She died instantly.
An emotional Vasquez joined fellow officers from Lay’s Redfern station, who gathered to lay flowers in memory of the constable who had joined the force less than 18 months ago.
Vasquez said he had been asked to speak on behalf of Lay’s mother Tamara and her family. He described Lay as the “love of his life”.
“Mia loved what she did in the police, she was happy in the police, she was good at her job and she was loved by everyone in the community,” Vasquez said.
“She was the happiest girl I’ve met – when she was with me, when she was at work – and I’d ask everyone to remember how stunning and beautiful she was.”
The Friday morning crash is now the subject of a critical incident investigation being overseen by the state’s policing watchdog, the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission.
Her colleague who was driving the car, a 24-year-old male constable, was taken to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in a stable condition with facial and leg injuries.
The pair were carrying out an urgent response to a reported vehicle theft in nearby Glebe.
Detectives will explore whether speed was a factor. The car was travelling under lights and sirens, which, under Australian law, allows police officers to exceed the speed limit.
Lay had recently returned to Redfern police station after a three-month secondment in the city’s eastern suburbs, where Vasquez is stationed.
The car was split into several pieces on impact, while debris, including a wheel, was found up to 100 metres from the accident scene.
Investigators on Friday carried out skid testing, which is used to assess road surfaces and measure friction, near the crash site.
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Alexandra Smith is a senior writer and former state political editor of The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via X or email.
Mostafa Rachwani is a Parramatta reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald. He was previously the Community Affairs reporter at Guardian Australia.Connect via email.From our partners
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