A funeral Mass is taking place today for Hillsborough County sheriff’s Deputy John Robert Kotfila Jr. , who was killed Saturday in an on-duty crash with a wrong-way driver.
Family, friends, public officials, law enforcement representatives from several agencies at St. Timothy Catholic Church in Lutz, which has made accommodations for an overflow crowd.
The service began at 1 p.m.
Kotfila, 30, was a six-year veteran of the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.
The crash occurred early Saturday on the Selmon Expressway, just west of the Interstate 75 overpass. The impact killed the wrong-way driver. Kotfila was taken to Tampa General Hospital, where he also died from his injuries.
A woman who witnessed the crash said it appeared Kotfila drove between her and the wrong-way driver to save her life.
The service was scheduled to include a fly-over of helicopters, including two from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, one Pinellas County and one from the Tampa Police Department. During the flyover, “Amazing Grace” will be played on bagpipes. The service will conclude with a “last call” over the sheriff’s office radio system.
Burial will be in Massachusetts, so there will be no procession to a cemetery after the service.
Copyright 2016 Tampa Tribune, Fla.
Tribune News Service
