PIKEVILLE, Ky. — The body of Pikeville police officer Scotty Hamilton was returned to the town Wednesday afternoon after he was shot and killed responding to a call late Tuesday night.
The body was transported back to the community in what turned out to be an emotional processional.
“It’s not an easy thing to sit here and do, especially seeing that procession,” Kentucky State Police Public Affairs Officer Jody Sims said during a news conference Wednesday afternoon staffed by WSAZ-TV. “The prayers (from the community and on social media) — those go a long way with lifting spirits.
Hamilton, a 12-year veteran of the police force, was with a Kentucky State Police trooper were conducting a criminal patrol in the Hurricane Creek area of Pike County when shots rang out. The trooper, who had separated from Hamilton, found Hamilton dead.
Police were still looking for the shooter late Wednesday afternoon. They did make four arrests in the area of the shooting earlier in the day but those were on separate outstanding warrants and aren’t believed to be connected to Hamilton’s death.
Officer Hamilton leaves behind a wife and small child.
Pikeville is just 26 miles from Williamson, West Virginia.