Police car catches fire after being rear-ended

Monday, Aug. 30, 2004 | 9:45 a.m.

A Metro Police officer was injured early Sunday morning when the police car he was driving caught fire after a four-car collision at a southeast Las Vegas intersection.

Officer Jeff Swan, 42, was stopped at a red light on Nellis Boulevard at Sahara Avenue when a Chevrolet Caprice driven by 22-year-old Nathaniel Dunnean collided with the back of the officer's car, police said.

The police car was knocked forward about 165 feet and ran into the tail end of a Hyundai Elantra that was stopped next to the officer at the light, police said.

The police car was pushed into the left rear side of a Chevrolet Silverado, stopped at a red light on the opposite side of the intersection, police said. The collision caused the police car to catch fire, engulfing 50 to 75 percent of it in flames, police said.

A passerby helped pull Swan out of the car, police said. The officer was taken by ambulance to University Medical Center with moderate injuries.

Clark County Fire Department firefighters had to use heavy equipment to free Dunnean from the Caprice, police said, and he was taken to UMC with serious injuries.

Police allege Dunnean was driving under the influence of drugs at the time of the collision. He was arrested on charges of driving under the influence, reckless driving, several firearms violations and an outstanding out-of-state warrant, police said.

No one else was injured in the collision.