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Trooper nearly killed during traffic stop, hit-and-run driver in custody

A state trooper was recovering Tuesday after a frightening incident during a traffic stop near Olympia. 

OLYMPIA, Wash. — Trooper Tricia Kranzt pulled over a car on Highway 101 in the Mud Bay area about 5:30 p.m. Monday. Authorities said the trooper was walking back to her car when a truck traveling up to 80 mph started to veer off the road toward the trooper.

"She had nowhere to go," eyewitness Aubriel Kepler told KIRO 7. Kepler watched in the rearview mirrors as the truck crossed over the fog line. Krantz was stuck between her patrol car and the truck as it came flying by her, clipping her gun belt and tossing her into the roadway.

"I saw her hit the ground, she was still in one piece," Kepler said.

Instead of stopping to help, the man driving the truck kept going at a high rate of speed, according to Kepler. She sped up, got the suspect's license plate number and called 911.

Kepler then raced back to the scene and was shocked to see Krantz back on her feet.

"Shockingly, she was okay,” said Kepler. “If that truck had been over even a smidge she'd be gone."   Using the license plate provided by Kepler, police were able to locate and arrest 27-year-old Matthew Nye on suspicion of hit-and-run.