FOND DU LAC, Wis. - The Wisconsin State Patrol has identified the young trooper shot and killed in the line of duty Tuesday in Fond du Lac while trying to apprehend a bank robbery suspect.
Trevor Casper of the Northeast Region made contact with the suspect in the City of Fond du Lac around 5:30 p.m, and gunfire was exchanged. Both the 21-year-old Casper and the suspect were killed.
The Wisconsin Department of Justice, Division of Criminal Investigation is conducting the investigation.
State Patrol officials say Trooper Casper, a native of Kiel, Wisconsin, joined the Wisconsin State Patrol on July 13, 2014 as a member of the 60th Recruit Class. Trooper Casper graduated from the Wisconsin State Patrol Academy on December 19, 2014 and was assigned to the Northeast Region headquartered in Fond du Lac.
His superiors say Casper had long aspired to be a law enforcement officer and wore the uniform with pride. "Our thoughts and prayers are with Trevor's family and all those that had the privilege to know him," said the Wisconsin State Patrol in a written statement.
In the small town of Kiel, about 30 miles northwest of Fond du Lac, Casper graduated from high school in 2011. Superintendent Louise Blankenheim says he was a varsity wrestler and soccer player who was elected to the homecoming court.
In Fond du Lac, flags were at half-staff and flowers had been left at the northeast region patrol headquarters where Casper was based.
Meanwhile, the state Department of Justice names the suspect as Steven Timothy Snyder. It doesn't give his age or hometown but says Snyder's family in Michigan has been notified. Authorities say he was suspected of robbing a bank and is believed to have killed another motorist earlier.
