BATON ROUGE - A longtime trooper with Louisiana State Police was arrested in another state after he was caught trying to pay for sex during a work-related trip. 

State Police said the trooper, 44-year-old Kirk Thibodeaux, was placed on leave after the agency got word he was booked in Rapid City, South Dakota. Pennington County law enforcement reported Thibobeaux committed the crime around 3 a.m. Tuesday at an area hotel. 

Thibodeaux has been with the agency since 2002. 

The criminal case has been handed over to Pennington County prosecutors and is ongoing.