Man charged with murder in shooting of Illinois state trooper in Southern Illinois

A man was charged with first-degree murder Saturday in the fatal shooting of Illinois State Trooper Nicholas Hopkins.

Chris Grant, a 46-year-old from East St. Louis, allegedly shot Hopkins during an exchange of gunfire Friday in the St. Louis, Missouri, suburb, the St. Clair County state’s attorney’s office said. Hopkins was serving a search warrant when gunfire erupted, according to Illinois State Police Acting Director Brendan Kelly.

Illinois State Police announced the charges against Grant on their Twitter page, saying that he is being held at the St. Clair County Jail in Southern Illinois on $5 million bond.

Hopkins, 33, was a 10-year veteran of ISP, Kelly said. He is the second Illinois state trooper to be shot this month.

A 32-year-old trooper was shot Aug. 15 while serving a search warrant in northwest suburban Wheeling. Volodymyr Dragan, 43, was charged with attempted murder in the incident; the officer was treated and released.