Highway Patrol trooper fatally shoots man on Noland Road

A Missouri Highway Patrol trooper shot and killed a Kansas City man who was unarmed but said he had a gun early Saturday morning in Independence, said Sgt. Collin Stosberg, Highway Patrol spokesman.

The man was identified as Scott M. Williford, 33, Stosberg said.

As is routine in such cases, the trooper was placed on administrative leave while the incident is investigated.

The trooper stopped to check on a man who was walking down the middle of Noland Road carrying a white plastic bag at 3 a.m. Saturday. When the trooper asked the man what he had in the bag, the man answered drugs, Stosberg said.

“The suspect said he had a 9 mm handgun and proceeded to stick his hands in his waistband as if he was attempting to retrieve a weapon,” Stosberg said. “The trooper, fearing for his own life, fired his service weapon, killing the suspect.”

No gun was found on the man, who was pronounced dead at the scene.

Earlier, the man had told a clerk at a nearby QuikTrip that he intended to rob the store, Stosberg said.

The shooting was being investigated by the Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control.

This story was originally published December 7, 2013 at 10:26 AM with the headline "Highway Patrol trooper fatally shoots man on Noland Road."