Missouri officer killed, 2nd hurt in shooting; suspect fled

HERMANN, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri police officer has been killed and a second officer is badly wounded after a shooting at a small-town convenience store.

The shooting about 9:30 p.m. Sunday killed Detective Sgt. Mason Griffith of the Hermann Police Department. Authorities have not released the name of the injured officer. The Missouri State Highway Patrol said the injured officer was in serious but stable condition at a hospital.

The patrol has not released information about what led to the shooting. It wasn’t clear if the officers returned fire. The patrol identified the suspect as 35-year-old Kenneth Lee Simpson of St. Louis County, who got away.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Monday that police are focusing their search for Simpson on a home along Highway 19 near Hermann, not far from where the shooting happened.

Police surrounded the home and yelled for him to come outside. Officers earlier searched near a motel in Hermann, where the Post-Dispatch said Simpson and his girlfriend may have rented a room Sunday.

Online Missouri court records show Simpson has a long history of criminal charges involving drugs, weapons offenses, assault and property damage. A St. Louis County judge issued a warrant for Simpson’s arrest in August when he failed to show up in court in a drug possession case.

Hermann is a town of about 2,100 residents, about 80 miles (130 kilometers) west of St. Louis. It is the county seat of Gasconade County.

This story has been corrected to show that Hermann is about 80 miles west of St. Louis, not 40 miles.