An NSW Police constable killed on the job in Sydney has been identified as a young police officer.
Mia Lay, 24, was killed instantly when her colleague crashed their marked police car into a tree on Gibbons St in Redfern about 1.30am on Friday.
They were travelling under lights and sirens to a reported vehicle theft at Glebe, NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon said at a press conference on Friday.
The driver, a male constable in his 20s, was taken to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in a stable condition.
The exact circumstances of the crash are now under investigation, and an incident declared as the force mourns.
“Mia had been in the NSW Police Force for 16-months.”
“She would have been a police officer, and to lose her life, both in its prime, and just at the infancy of becoming a police officer is an incident.”
Lanyon thanked Lay for putting her life on the line to keep her community safe.
The NSW Premier, the Minister of Police, and the state Opposition Leader all acknowledged the wide mourning that has followed the constable’s death.
NSW Minister for Police Yasmin Catley called the loss of the “enthusiastic” young constable “heartbreaking news”.
“Our police officers dedicate themselves to looking after others, and today the NSW Police family is mourning one of its own.”
NSW Liberal Leader Kellie Sloane also revealed her heartbreak over the crash.