Mo. manhunt ends with fugitive accused of killing cop arrested
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Authorities say a man charged with killing a Clinton, Missouri, police officer during a traffic stop has been arrested.
Missouri State Highway Patrol dispatchers say 39-year-old Ian McCarthy of Clinton was taken into custody Tuesday night in Henry County. McCarthy is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Officer Gary Michael during a traffic stop Sunday night.
Authorities said earlier Tuesday that a search of a house in the small town of Chilhowee, about 25 miles northwest of Clinton, came up empty.
Investigators believe McCarthy jumped from his vehicle and shot Michael, before driving a short distance, crashing his vehicle and fleeing on foot, CBS affiliate KCTV reports.
McCarthy was able to elude a swarm of law enforcement officers, who scoured fields, woods, abandoned buildings and even empty school buses. More than 100 local, county and state law enforcement officers had been searching for McCarthy.
McCarthy is also wanted in New Hampshire, where a warrant was issued in 2013 when he failed to show up for sentencing on a disorderly conduct charge, according to court records in that state. McCarthy served about four years in prison on first-degree assault and a parole violation, according to KCTV.
McCarthy is also wanted on a warrant out of Johnson County, Miss., in 2015 for unlawful possession of a firearm.
Michael was the first officer killed in the line of duty in Clinton, a town of about 9,000 people 75 miles southeast of Kansas City.
The victim's brother says he will be remembered for strengthening the community he helped serve.
"He's my hero. He's my big brother," Chris Michael said Tusday.