Crime & Safety

Speeding Deputy Who Crashed Into Marguerite Pole is Olympian Athlete

The deputy who slammed into a light pole was an Olympic athlete from Nigeria.

The sheriff's deputy who crashed into a light pole near Lake Mission Viejo has been identified as a former Olympic athlete.

Deputy Adewale Olukoju, 44, was not wearing a seatbelt when he sped 70-75 MPH into a light pole on Marguerite last month, sheriff's Captain Jim Rudy said. He was not responding to an emergency, police confirmed.

The 6'4" deputy represented his native Nigeria in the 1988 and 1996 Olympic games as a discus thrower.

The light pole and the Ford Crown Victoria police cruiser Olukoju was driving were both damaged. An investigation into the incident is ongoing, sheriff's spokesman Jeff Hallock said. He declined to say how long the investigation was expected to last.

"He's still recovering," Hallock said of the deputy.

Olukoju has served in Mission Viejo for over five years, Rudy said previously.


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