Tampa, FL – A Tampa Police Department employee died this week in what authorities say was a case of accidental carbon monoxide poisoning.
Tiffany Lin Lawrence, 31, who once worked as an administrative assistant in the department’s Internal Affairs Bureau, was found unconscious by her roommate Tuesday inside her townhouse near Brandon.
Tampa police Chief Jane Castor detailed what happened Wednesday in an email to TPD employees.
“A few hours after finishing her shift on May 20th, Tiffany went home for some much deserved sleep,” Castor wrote. “After parking her car in her garage, she went into her home and forgot to turn off the engine. The home slowly filled with carbon monoxide.”
She was rushed to Brandon Regional Hospital, where she died Thursday, authorities said. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office investigated the death and determined it was an accident, according to Castor. Four pets also died.
Lawrence had been with the TPD since January 2003, working first as a dispatcher before moving to Internal Affairs and then returning to dispatch work, officials said.