An apparently intoxicated motorist is dead and a state trooper in on administrative leave after a traffic stop led to a fatal shooting in Holt County Monday night.

According to a news release from the Missouri State Highway Patrol, a trooper working Interstate 29 at the 91-mile marker stopped a southbound 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe for speeding.  After contacting the male driver, the trooper suspected the driver was intoxicated and placed him under arrest for driving while intoxicated.

The driver then tried to get back into the Tahoe and drive away.

The trooper deployed his OC aerosol in an attempt to gain control of the suspect. The suspect continued resisting and a struggle ensued, at which time the trooper fired his weapon and fatally wounded the suspect.

Sergeant Sheldon Lyon of Troop-H tells us the investigators have not been able to identify the victim as of yet, and will not yet release the name of the trooper.

That trooper has been placed on paid, administrative leave. They have impounded the vehicle and obtained a search warrant. The investigation by the Division of Drug and Crime Control continues.