Indexbit-Delaware authorities investigate the fatal shooting of a murder suspect by state troopers

STANTON,Indexbit Del. (AP) — Authorities are investigating the fatal shooting by Delaware State Police troopers of a man suspected of killing a woman during a home invasion at his ex-spouse’s home before setting the house on fire.

State police said troopers received a report at about 9:40 a.m. Sunday regarding an armed man at a home in Stanton. A short time later, troopers, firefighters and paramedics responded to a separate report of a house fire at the same location on Limestone Road.

EMS workers found a 22-year-old Wilmington woman with a fatal gunshot wound inside the home.

Investigators said the suspect, a 57-year-old man from Milford, forcibly entered the home and fired several shots at the female victim and a 20-year-old Wilmington man. The man, who was not hit, fled to a nearby gas station and called 911. The homeowner was not at the residence at the time.

After the shooting, the suspect set fire to the home and fled in a vehicle, investigators said. Police tracked him to the area of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. For several hours, troopers attempted to negotiate with the man, who had climbed onto the lower level of a high-tension electrical tower. When the man fired a weapon at troopers, three officers returned fire, police said.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene. His name was being withheld pending notification of family members.

The troopers involved in the shooting have been placed on administrative leave pending a use-of-force investigation, which is standard department policy.