Brig. Gen. John Pogorek, New Hampshire National Guard Assistant Adjutant General for Air, poses for an official portrait June 21, 2022 at Pease Air National Guard Base, New Hampshire. Pogorek took command during the 157th Air Refueling Wing change of command ceremony June 4, 2022. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Victoria Nelson)
Police say an arrest has made in the July hit-and-run crash that resulted in the death of the commander of the New Hampshire Air National Guard.
Rochester police said they arrested 81-year-old Paul Clement, of Rochester, on Tuesday in connection to the July 8 crash that killed 57-year-old Brig. Gen. John "Pogo" Pogorek, of Strafford.
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Clement turned himself in after police issued a warrant for his arrest. He was released on personal recognizance bail and is scheduled to be arraigned on a charge of felony conduct after an accident resulting in injury or death on Sept. 2 in Strafford County Superior Court.
Rochester police said they responded to Crown Point Road at 5:22 p.m. on July 8 for a report of a motor vehicle crash involving a pedestrian. Their preliminary investigation showed that a 2014 Toyota Tundra pulling a trailer was stopped on the side of the road as its driver attempted to fix a strap that was holding down hay he was hauling when a Toyota RAV4 headed west on Crown Point Road struck the pedestrian and continued without stopping.
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The driver of the Tundra, identified by police as Pogorek, suffered life-threatening injuries and died at the scene. A juvenile passenger in the Tundra was uninjured.
Not long after the accident, police received a tip that Clement was the driver of the vehicle that struck Pogorek. Police located Clement and the vehicle and the vehicle was impounded.
The accident is still being actively investigated and may result in additional charges, police said.
As the assistant adjutant general for the New Hampshire Air National Guard, Pogorek was responsible for the command, operations and combat readiness of over 1,300 officers, airmen and civilians at Peae Air National Guard Base in Newington. He is survived by his wife, Whitney, and their five children.
The crash remains under investigation, according to police, and no charges have been filed at this time. Anyone with information that could assist police is asked to call Detective Matthew Flathers at 603-330-7128.
