ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Mo. — The man killed during a police standoff near two bridges in the St. Louis area is the same man police believe killed a woman in Foristell on Thursday, the St. Charles County Police Department said.
The man, identified as Clyde Young, of Godfrey, Illinois, was charged Thursday with second-degree murder and armed criminal action, court records said. He was killed during the police standoff just hours after the woman's death.
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Young reportedly called the St. Charles County Police Department and told them a dead person was located inside a semi-truck located at 1000 North Service Road in Foristell near a Pilot Travel Center and Quality Inn, the documents said. Officers arrived at the scene and confirmed that a woman was dead inside the truck.
Investigators found that the semi-truck was leased to Young and he was the operator of the vehicle at the time of the shooting.
Young left the scene before officers arrived, police said. He called the department later and told them he and the victim were in a romantic relationship, got into a verbal argument and then he shot her in the head with a shotgun, police said.
Young allegedly told police he knowingly committed the act to cause the victim bodily harm intentionally.
Cpl. Barry Bayles with the St. Charles County Police Department said that the police standoff started after police tried to speak with Young in person about the Foristell homicide. Young reportedly refused and became agitated.
"(Police officers) began to speak with (Young) there at that scene, the individual advised him that he had a weapon in the vehicle with him and so officers kept their distance and investigators were called in," Bayles said.
Officers tried to negotiate with the man for more than three hours. During the negotiation, Bayles said Young got into his car and began retrieving a gun. Multiple shots were fired; one came from an officer at the scene and the rest from Young, Bayles said.
Young was pronounced dead at the scene. Bayles said that after a preliminary investigation, it appeared Young's gunshot wound was self-inflicted.
Investigations into both the standoff and the Foristell homicide are ongoing.
The Lewis Bridge and the Clark Bridge were both blocked to traffic due to a large police presence in the area, police said in a statement.
Multiple other agencies, including the St. Louis County Police Department, Missouri State Highway Patrol, Alton Police Department and a regional SWAT team have responded to help with the incident.
The Lewis Bridge carries U.S. Route 67 over the Missouri River spanning from St. Louis County to St. Charles County. The Clark Bridge is just a few miles away and carries the same route over the Mississippi River.
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