BOTETOURT COUNTY, Va. — A driver pulled over for speeding on Interstate 81 in Botetourt County Tuesday morning has died, according to Virginia State Police. The driver displayed a gun when the state trooper approached the vehicle. No shots were fired as the state trooper retreated, a Virginia State Police spokesman said.
Both lanes of Interstate 81 near the 161 mile marker were shutdown for safety as a police negotiator attempted to coax the driver out of the vehicle.
“Despite state police’s attempts to make contact, the driver was consistently unresponsive,” the Virginia State Police spokesman said in a press release. “Law enforcement then approached the vehicle, found the driver unresponsive, and removed the driver from the vehicle. The driver was immediately taken to the ambulance on scene, where medics declared the driver deceased. The incident remains under investigation.”
The driver may have been connected to an earlier non-fatal shooting in Staunton, WDBJ7 reported.
Interstate 81 has since reopened. This is a developing story.
