Man Arrested After Head-On Crash With Tewksbury Police Cruiser

TEWKSBURY (CBS) – A Lawrence man is facing charges after Tewksbury police say the van he was driving crashed head-on into one of their police cruisers Tuesday morning. It happened on Route 133 near Blacksmith Lane around 6:45 a.m.

Both the officer and the driver of the van were taken to local hospitals with minor injuries.

"The preliminary investigation indicates that the Tewksbury officer was traveling eastbound on Route 133 when the second vehicle, traveling in the opposite direction, allegedly crossed into the officer's lane of travel striking the police cruiser head-on," said a statement from police.

Twenty-one-year-old Jorge Joel Gomez Guzman, was charged with negligent operation of a motor vehicle, a marked lanes violation, and having an improperly registered vehicle.

The van could be seen smashed into a utility pole. The cruiser has major front-end damage.

A neighbor said he heard a boom at the time of the crash and later saw the van driver taken to the hospital in an ambulance. He also saw the officer involved walking around afterward.

Route 133 was closed between Trull and River road for several hours during the investigation.

"It's a pretty wide road so people do tend to go pretty fast," said Adam Moldawer, who lives nearby.