West Virginia trooper fatally shot in Mingo County; suspect in custody, authorities say

A West Virginia State Police trooper was killed in the line of duty and a suspect was in custody late Friday in connection to the officer’s slaying, state authorities said.

Sgt. Cory Maynard was fatally shot in Mingo County Friday afternoon, said Will Thompson, U.S. attorney for West Virginia’s southern district. The county is about 50 miles southwest of Charleston, the state capitol, and rests along the Virginia border.

According to information posted by Mingo County Emergency Management, an armed suspect was being pursued just before 5 p.m. in the county’s Beech Creek area and people were being asked to shelter in place.

State police posted on Facebook the manhunt stemmed “from a shooting where a uniformed member of the West Virginia State Police was shot.”

Police said troopers were met with gunfire when responding to a report of a shooting and Maynard was transported to a hospital and pronounced dead.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives office in Louisville, Kentucky, which leads a field division covering portions of West Virginia, tweeted at least one other person was injured in the incident.

Additional details about the shooting were not immediately released, including the identity of the other person injured.