A Santa Fe Police officer and an innocent civilian were killed in a traffic crash just north of Old Pecos Trail during a pursuit of a carjacking and kidnapping suspect this week.

According to a press release from the New Mexico State Police (NMSP), the suspect's vehicle was headed south in the northbound lanes of I-25 when two Santa Fe Police patrol units, the suspect's vehicle, and an uninvolved vehicle collided. The accident killed Officer Robert Duran, 43, and the uninvolved driver, identified as Frank Lovato, a retired Las Vegas firefighter. 

"In that moment, it was just terror. It was really just shocking to look up and see a vehicle driving the wrong way on the highway at all and then also seeing the police cars behind them. It was pretty easy to figure out what happened," Jolene Duran, a witness, said to KRQE. 

The kidnapping victim was able to escape the suspect's vehicle after the crash and has since been released from the hospital. Witnesses described seeing a man run from the scene, according to the NMSP release. 

New Mexico State Police continues to investigate the crash and wants to speak with anyone who saw the suspect's vehicle or its occupants after the accident.

KRQE reported that the Santa Fe Police Department hasn't lost an officer in the line of duty in decades.