PITTSBURGH (AP) – The body of a state trooper was found near his cruiser after he pulled over a car early Monday, police said.

Cpl. Joseph Pokorny was found dead about 2 a.m. near an exit of Interstate 279 about 5 miles southwest of the city, officials said.

“I just want to say that we are going to work this investigation until the suspects involved in this cowardly murder are behind bars,” said state police Col. Jeffrey B. Miller.

Pokorny, 45, who had been a trooper for more than 22 years, was found by a Carnegie borough police officer. The officer saw Pokorny’s car door open and found the trooper’s body outside the car.

Pokorny had called in information on a black 2001 Mercury sedan minutes earlier, and police were reviewing tapes of the call to determine why he had pulled it over.

Police were also looking for the sedan, while officers from several departments joined in a manhunt in woods near the shooting, authorities said. Police said the trooper’s gun was also missing, although they couldn’t say if that was the weapon used to shoot Pokorny.

WTAE-TV in Pittsburgh showed police escorting a person from the woods and a police car driving away with someone in the back. Allegheny County Police Superintendent Charles Moffatt said he didn’t have any information on that stop or whether it was related to the shooting.

Late Monday morning, police surrounded an apartment building and cordoned off streets in Pittsburgh’s South Side neighborhood, which is about 5 miles from where the shooting occurred.

Police took into custody a man and women and led them from the scene, although officials wouldn’t immediately comment about whether it was related to the trooper’s shooting.

Trooper Robin Mungo said three or four people may have been involved in the shooting. At least four people were brought in for questioning.

Police were asking for the public’s help in finding the sedan. Authorities said they believed the driver was armed and dangerous.

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Associated Press Writer Dan Lovering contributed to this report.