Suspected gunman, two workers killed at Pennsylvania toll plaza

By Marcus E. Howard

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A gunman fatally shot two workers at a Pennsylvania Turnpike toll plaza during an attempted armed robbery on Sunday morning before state police killed the suspect in an exchange of gunfire, authorities said.

A turnpike employee and another worker employed as a contractor were killed in the incident at the Fort Littleton toll booth, about 65 miles (105 km) west of the state capital of Harrisburg.

State troopers arrived minutes after the attempted robbery began to unfold shortly before 7 a.m. ET (1100 GMT), confronted the suspect and fatally shot him, authorities said in a statement.

Fulton County Coroner Berley Souders confirmed that all three individuals were male.

Neither the names of those involved nor any further details were provided. A news conference is scheduled at 5 p.m. ET (2100 GMT) on Sunday.

"On behalf of my fellow Turnpike commissioners and everybody in the PA Turnpike family, we are all deeply saddened by this horrific tragedy,” Turnpike Commission Chairman Sean Logan said in a statement.

Cash is accepted at most Pennsylvania toll booths, but a growing number are being converted to accept only payment through electronic E-Z Pass system, according to the Turnpike Commission.

State police and other security personnel are charged with patrolling the turnpike system, which runs across the southern part of the state and north from the Philadelphia area to Scranton, according to the commission's website.

(Reporting by Marcus E. Howard; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Alan Crosby)