The story is nothing less than a compound tragedy for everyone involved.
The respected officer may soon be facing criminal charges after the accident, which happened just days after he buried his ex-wife.
And another family is also grieving a terrible loss.
The police officer was at his home Wednesday morning and had no comment about the pending charges. Sources say he was at the wheel of a silver Dodge Challenger when it T-boned a van.
Investigators served a warrant on Maggie's Waterfront Café in Torresdale. Sources say in the hours before the fatal accident, the police sergeant was at the café.
Sources say he was with a young female friend who later ended up in his car but was not injured in the accident.
Investigators had to secure the warrant because the operators of Maggie's declined to voluntarily give up the footage.
Authorities have also secured video from businesses along State Road which recorded footage of the officer's Dodge Challenger passing through before the accident.
The accident happened at 11:40 p.m. Saturday at State Road and Ashburner Street in Holmesburg.
The driver of the van, 55-year-old David Farries, died of his injuries Tuesday morning.
Action News is not naming the officer because he has not been charged with anything yet. But sources say his blood alcohol level was over the limit.
Two weeks ago, his ex-wife, who was also an officer, collapsed at her police station.
She had suffered an aneurysm and died four days later. Then, two days after the funeral, the officer was involved in this crash.
The family of Farries is outraged that no charges have been filed yet.
"I feel if it was vice versa, my dad would be sitting in jail right now," Farries' daughter Nicole Pirrone said.
David Farries grew up in Kensington and leaves behind four daughters and seven grandchildren. They say he was the ultimate caregiver who took care of everybody in his life.
"To see him leave the world this way, in a car accident, that devastating, is just awful, unimaginable," the victim's widow Tammy Farries said.
The officer and his ex-wife had three children who've lost their mother and whose father is now facing the possibility of a long jail term.
Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey is keeping on top of developments while attending a convention in Chicago.
He says investigators are waiting for toxicology test results from both the officer and the victim, and that the State Police are retrieving vehicle data from the officer's car.
Ramsey says the case is being treated like any other and will be turned over to the district attorney if charges are warranted.
