Officer arrested after Sikeston crash leaves 1 dead, 4 seriously injured

One person died and four others were seriously injured Saturday night in Sikeston, Missouri, where a traffic crash resulted in the arrest of a Sikeston Department of Public Safety officer for driving while intoxicated.

The accident occurred at 9:15 p.m. when a 2016 Dodge Challenger driven by off-duty Sikeston DPS officer Andrew J. Cooper, 46, ran a stop sign at the intersection of East Salcedo Road and Columbine Street and collided head-on with a 2017 Chevrolet Equinox, according to a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report.

A passenger in the Equinox was fatally injured in the crash. According to the crash report, Abigail T. Cohen, 22, of Sikeston was pronounced dead at 9:57 p.m. by Dr. Tirso Aldana at Missouri Delta Medical Center.

The report also stated the driver of the Equinox, identified as 24-year-old Christopher M. Cohen, was seriously injured in the crash and transported from the scene by ambulance.

An air ambulance transported one of the Challenger’s seriously injured passengers to a local hospital.

A second passenger of the Challenger and the off-duty Sikeston officer driving also sustained serious injuries in the crash, and both were transported from the scene by ambulance.

Cooper was arrested at 10:07 p.m. on a felony charge of driving while intoxicated resulting in a death and was released for medical treatment, according to a highway patrol arrest report.

On Sunday, Sikeston DPS chief James McMillen issued a statement regarding the crash.

“Sikeston DPS requested Missouri State Highway Patrol investigate the accident due to the severity and that an off-duty Sikeston Public Safety was involved in his personal vehicle,” McMillen said in the statement.

The highway patrol’s Major Crash Investigation Unit is conducting the investigation, according to the statement.

McMillen said his department learned of the off-duty officer’s arrest late Saturday night, and Cooper was subsequently placed on administrative leave pending criminal and administrative investigations.

“Our deepest sympathies go out to the injured parties and the family of the deceased woman,” McMillen said in the statement. “As this investigation is being conducted by the MSHP, we will defer to them to release information pertaining to the cause of this incident.”

On Sunday, a phone operator at the Missouri State Highway Patrol said a public-information officer would be unavailable to be reached for comment until today.