Dallas police officer dies after being hit by wrong-way driver while on his way to work, police say

A Dallas police officer has died after he was hit by a wrong-way driver while the officer was on his way to work Tuesday night, police said.

Just after 11:45 p.m. on Oct. 11, Dallas Police Department officer Jacob Arellano, 25, was off-duty, on his way to start his shift on a Dallas highway when his SUV was hit by a sedan driving the wrong way, the department said in a news release.

The crash caused Arellano’s vehicle to go into another lane where it was hit by a tractor trailer. The officer’s SUV then rolled “several times” before coming to a stop on the shoulder of the highway. 

Emergency personnel arrived on the scene and took Arellano to a local hospital in critical condition. In an update, police said Arellano died from injuries suffered in the crash early Wednesday morning. 

The wrong-way driver was taken a local hospital and was in serious condition, police said. A preliminary investigation into the accident determined the driver may have been intoxicated, but the investigation from the department’s traffic unit was still active. The driver of the tractor trailer was not injured. 

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Arellano had been a member of the Dallas Police Department since June 2019, police said. He is survived by his parents, girlfriend and infant child, as well as his brother who is also an officer in the department. 

“It is with a heavy heart that I share that, after a brave fight, Dallas PD Officer Jacob Arellano, died this morning as a result of his injuries sustained in the head-on collision. Please keep Jacob, his son, his girlfriend, and his family in your prayers. Rest easy brother,” Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia said on Twitter.