A state trooper was killed and another was critically injured during two violent encounters with the same armed suspect in central Pennsylvania, the first unfolding near State Police barracks, authorities said.

The suspect, whose name was not immediately released, was fatally shot during a gunfight with the trooper who was killed, according to the Pennsylvania State Police.

The violence began at 12:45 p.m. Saturday when the gunman opened fire on a Pennsylvania state trooper near the State Police barracks in Mifflintown, about 45 miles northwest of Harrisburg, police said.

The suspect fled the scene after shooting the trooper, who was in critical condition at a hospital, according to Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.

Following an intense three-hour search, state police cornered the suspect in Walker Township, about 50 miles northwest of Mifflintown, according to authorities.

A gunfight broke out between the suspect and another state trooper, authorities said. During the exchange of gunfire in Walker Township, both the suspect and the trooper were killed, officials said.

The name of the trooper who was fatally shot was not immediately released.

Shapiro and Pennsylvania State Police Col. Christopher Paris visited the wounded trooper and his family in a hospital.

"I thanked his colleagues for their service and prayed for his recovery," Shapiro said in a statement released on Twitter.

Shapiro said he and his wife Lori "send our love to the family of the trooper killed."

Shapiro praised the two state troopers who were shot, saying, "Each one put themselves on the line to protect their fellow troopers -- and to protect their fellow Pennsylvanians."

A motive for the shootings remained under investigation Sunday.

At least 25 U.S. law enforcement officers have now been shot to death in the line of duty this year, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page. In 2022, a total of 61 U.S. law enforcement officers were killed by gunfire in the line of duty, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page website.