Stafford officer 'grew up with the department'

Christian Crum

In his four years with Stafford police, Christian Crum proved a big help in a small department.

"He's just one of those guys who was the first to help," says Stafford Police Department spokesperson Corporal Raphael Virata. "He had his finger in everything."

Crum, 31, died Sunday afternoon after an off-duty motorcycle crash.

Crum was part of the Stafford police family long before he started as a patrol officer. His father, Lt. Lonnie Crum, has been with the department for about 35 years, and is retiring at the end of the month, Virata says.

"His father being here, he grew up with the department, basically," Virata adds.

The younger Crum also served as the department's warrant officer, and "he also was responsible for upkeep of all the radio equipment, and anything that had to do with cars as far as electronics, he was in charge of that," Virata says.

Christian Crum helped the department apply for grant funding and made progress on setting up the city's emergency operations center. Virata also recalls Christian Crum stepping up to help raise money for another fellow officer who suffered from a heart attack.

Before joining the department, Christian Crum was enlisted in the U.S. Navy for four years. He grew up in Sugar Land, Virata says.

Christian Crum is not married but leaves behind his parents and a younger brother, Virata says. Police are still working on funeral arrangements.

"We have 40 officers and probably 55 employees total," Virata says. "Something like this, everybody knew about it yesterday."

"Everybody's mourning what happened," he says. "Missouri City and Sugar Land, all the departments around here, knew Chris, because he did so much, with the 911 system and radio equipment. Everybody called and offered their condolences."