KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Kansas City, Kan., police said an officer killed himself after being involved in a traffic accident that killed a fellow officer.

Police Chief Sam Breshears said Officers Mark A. Jaramillo and Kyle L. Kovac were both involved in a wreck early Saturday morning at Interstates 435 and 70. They were off duty at the time.

Jaramillo was pronounced dead at the scene due to his injuries.

Police later went to Kovac's apartment after being told he was distraught over Jaramillo's death. The officers said they found Kovac dead of an apparent suicide.

Both patrol officers had been with the department for five years.

"It's such a tragic situation that seems to have been compounded by the loss of both of their lives," said Cynthia Jaramillo-Carlson, Jaramillo's cousin.

Jaramillo-Carlson described her 38-year-old cousin as a man of strong faith who served his community as a police officer and as a member of the 101st Airborne Division in the U.S. Army. Jaramillo had just been promoted to the SWAT team, according to his relatives.

Breshears said the accident is being investigated by the department and the Kansas Highway Patrol.

"You always want to know more, you know, what happened, but I guess the more important thing really is not so much how a person's life ends but what's most important is how they lived," Jaramillo-Carlson said.