In a deadly Tupelo shooting on Monday afternoon, Police Sergeant Gale Stauffer was killed by what sounded like machine gun fire; another officer was seriously wounded in the incident.
A passer-by, Kenny Steen, heard a racket which appeared to come from a pawn store in Tupelo: “We heard some, just a real, ‘burr, burr’ real fast, so we came out and there was cop cars coming they stopped right here in the street,” he said.
He said he witnessed the moment the officer was shot: “Soon as I came out, there was an officer actually falling, going down,” he added.
What actually happened was that a masked gunman, armed with an AK-47 assault rifle, had entered BanCorpSouth’s Gloster Creek Village branch and demanded money. Police were called, and Stauffer and another officer responded. The robber opened fire, shooting Stauffer.
It seems that the Tupelo shooting could have been avoided if it had not been for the position of a commuter train, which effectively cornered the robbers as well as the police officers who arrived at the scene.
Authorities have confirmed that AK-47 assault rifles were used in the fatal shooting. Tupelo Mayor, Jason Shelton, spoke about the police investigation into the shooting which is currently underway:
“The law enforcement is leaving no stone unturned. They’re out following every lead and certainly just pray that they fugitives can be captured,” he said.
The Tupelo shooting has not been taken lightly by some of the local businesses in the area. They have now raised the reward for information leading to the arrest of the shooter to just over $150,000.
Heather Krutz, who was just down the street when the shooting happened said: “It’s scary. It’s sad. It makes me not want to go in the bank with my children anymore.”
Another resident also expressed their feelings on the shooting: “I’m glad they’re actually doing something about it. It takes a special breed of person actually to do something that low,” said Matt Lavender.
It is hoped by all that the police will find the perpetrators of the Tupelo shooting so that they can be brought to justice and the town can return to its normal routine.
That's right, folks. Guns don't kill people … people kill people! I'd have liked to see the bad guys try to kill this officer with their bare hands!
May God Bless his family..One has to ask if that was an Eric Holder fast and furious gun like the one used on Border patrol officer Brian Terry. If so they'll never find the shooter.
Guns from Fast and Furious?
Unless illegally altered,AK 47's are NOT MACHINE GUNS. They are Semi automatic rifles
No. From NRA.
Obama's Fast and Furious. Where he "Sold", they were actually given to the Mexican Cartels for use against the US Border Patrol and anyone stupid enough to get in the way.
how long has this been going on? how many more before this country comes to its senses?
Good luck to the police in catching these murderers….condolences to the officer(s) killed and injured….
edward_eubanks The NRA does not sell guns. Your ignorance is stunning !
gee machine guns in MISSissippi , how is this happening???? oh yeah, Obumma wont secure the borders so they are coming up from central america, where they sell for 25$..Thanks Dumocrats.
Don't be a dolt, if that is possible. If you think a legally purchased machine gun was used, you are nuts. But, hey, while we are on the subject, did you see a 14-year-old recently stabbed to death his teacher? I suppose if knives were illegal, that could have been avoided.
Guess what: Machine guns are illegal unless you have a special permit. And if you think the perps used legally purchased firearms, you are nuts.
These were full auto AK's–true Assault Rifles–already highly regulated, already illegal for most people This incident has absolutely nothing to do the gun control debate, so the grabbers can just STFU;.
Cops ARE killed by criminals with their bare hands, an average 50 leo's die every year by "unarmed" criminals,120 cops are killed by criminals with the cops gun. how does this happen?????? in prison criminals train each other on how to trap a cops hand in a jacket during a search and then kill the cop , and thanks to the ACLU the prisons cant stop it..
Gail how does an inanimate object shoot someone? Someone has to pull the trigger. Just as a automobile has to have a driver to kill someone. Just like the idiot in Ohio that was driving 125 MPH that killed the elderly couple on Thanksgiving day.
edward_eubanks , you obviously failed to notice the robbers had machine guns. If you think they bought those legally, you are an idiot.
more obama fast and furious guns that the mexicans have brought back across the border
Not Fast and Furious guns. Those were garden variety, civilian, semi-automatic AK copies. These appear to have been the real deal: full auto, like machine guns..
Lou Gots, yep,they either were illegally modified or just plain illegally smuggled into the U.S. and purchased on the black market. Criminals, as you well know, do not abide by local, state and federal gun laws.
Wow, this is some piss poor reporting.
It wasn't a machine gun. It was a semi automatic rifle. And before you start they have been around since the turn of the century. They are not a new threat to society. The only new threat we have is people trying to sanitize the world so we wont drink to many large sodas and take away our freedom of speech and ability to own rifles.
Maybe if we made staircases and elevators illegal that guy in New York wouldn't have been able to kill his son and himself by jumping off a building.
I live here and no one has said anything about AK-47 or machine guns. Also it is not a BancorpSouth train. BankcorpSouth is the bank that was robbed.
Were they actually Machine guns, or semi-automatic rifles? There is a difference, but the press always fails to note that.
Mike Heuer
Actually Mike here where I live in Texas, I ran into some good ole law abiding redneck white boys while I was out hiking with my dogs the other day. And lo and behold, these god fearing law abiding white boys had converted two assault rifles I'm sure they had purchased legally into machine guns. To top it off they were shooting them in an Corp of Engineers area that was only legal for shotguns.
I started to call the cops on them, but here in Texas what good would that do.
BTW- I'm white, have two masters degrees (one from an Ivy), have three rescue dogs who double as therapy dogs at a local cancer center, have a 6 figure salary and would NEVER vote for a Republican.
So Mike, you simplified Fox News version of reality doesn't fly with me.
Mike Heuer You can only have Full On Machine guns in certain states. I know some people who have actually moved to those States to own these beautiful machines. But, they arent going to go use them to kill people. They are fun to shoot!!!
whenever an officer gets shot its "a family lost a father" ….whenever a person gets killed by an officer its "crazed man in officer involved shooting"
jstboykin You are an idiot. Would "NEVER" vote for a Republican???? Ivy league college??? WOW!!!! I am impressed that they let you in – oh wait….you were the special ed pity student. How do you know they were "converted assault rifles"? I'm sure that they just offered that information up to you. And by the way……an assault rifle is fully automatic by name. They would not have to convert it. Here in Texas, we law abiding citizens, can own what ever we can afford up to and including full automatic weapons. Which, by the way, account for less than .01 percent of weapons used in crimes. Doctors (which it sounds like you either are / or work with) kill more people than firearms do. Maybe we should ban them?
My hope would be that the police will kill these scum POS killers for "resisting arrest" when they track them down, and save the state a whole bunch of money!
Just another AK 47 Mikhail invented. Another dead police officer. Another mother, spouse, child, father, without their loved one and all because we will not even registered firearms in America. Mikhail died yesterday also – I guess the gun he invented had to take another life with him.
how come every time a dems gets in office everybody has got a store about a shooting . don't get me wrong my thoughts and prayers go out to the family .
jstboykin , like most liberal twits, you fall on the "Fox News" BS with no basis in reality, nor does your highly racist rant have anything to do with legal use of firearms. Even converting a semi-automatic rifle into a fully automatic machine gun is against the law, bonehead. And, while there absolutely is nothing wrong with Fox News, which the Pew Center has determined to be one of the most balanced sources of broadcast news, I don't watch it. You only have proven you are a complete imbecile and why the Ivy league is incredibly overrated. I also have a master's degree, ya twit. From a Big 10 university, to boot.
Louis Richards did you just pull those stats out of your ass?
It may have happened, but after the Sandy Hook Hoax I believe nothing by our government.
jstboykin "Redneck"? would you use a racial term had the person been black? No, you are a P.C. coward. You feel comfortable using hateful terms on whites…hypocrite
Arthur Kinney The inquisitr is a Zionist rag. If this happened, really, my condolences. But after Sandy Hook Hoax, I have a hard time believing in our government. 9/11 too.Wake up people.
registering this weapon would have done what????
Why don't you register everything you own with the Government, that way when something is banned or restricted, that your already own it will make it easier for them can come confiscate it from you….
The description from the witnesses does make it sound like they were using likely illegally obtained fully automatic rifles. Not saying the witness reports are accurate, as they often aren't. but, if true, they do sound like they were fully automatic.
Every firearm I ever purchased has been registered as required by law, and I have had to undergo background checks to get them transferred to me, including at gun shows. Geoteacher has no idea what he is talking about.
Scott Cooper , the guy is an idiot. I get a kick out of the "Fox News" rant as well. I don't watch Fox News, although there is nothing wrong with it. The Pew Center says Fox News is one of the most balanced broadcast news sources. The guy likely is just lying. I also have a master's degree, which really means nothing unless you are some idiot trying to act superior by throwing it at people. I have met plenty of morons from the Ivy League and have not been impressed, For that matter, we have one in the White House.
thats the job he chose to support his wife and kids. Not smart.
jstboykin So basically, You are a rich idiot!! With too much money invested in education.
jstboykin I bet your dogs are brighter than you anyway. Give them up to a shelter. They will be much happier. Better dead than red!!!
Well, if only guns were illegal then the law abiding murderous bank robbers wouldn't have killed anyone. (that was sarcasm, for you libtards)
don't worry its ok just ask the national rifle association
guns don't kill people just ask the national rifle association we need more guns
edward_eubanks moron
Want to find the shooter? Look in Washington D.C. for the people who hired them.
the type of gun had nothing to do with it at all! the officer could have just as well been shot and killed with a 22cal. or shot gun! if someone wants to kill they dont even need a gun at all! stop blaming guns for all the crime and start addressing the reason for the crime!!!! drugs folks drugs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
you are right! but what most dont know is any semi auto can be made fully auto in about 5 mins with a simple modification! and it dont take a semi auto or fullly auto to kill or even a gun at all . if someone wants to kill you they have many opptions other than guns! archie bunker said it best years ago when gloria and meat head was protesting hand guns and told him did you know hundreds of folks were killed last year by hand guns alone? his answer was jeeze baby girl would it make you happier if they had pushed them out a window? that says it all to me! if someone wants you daed it dont take a gun to do the job!!!! what needs to be address is the reason for 89% of all crime that being drugs!!!!
The pic of the perp looks white. But guess I was wrong. — The FBI has been called in and a reward is being offered to catch the suspect, who is described as 5'9" to 6' tall, a thin build with a light black complexion. — Better increase the EBT amounts.
no the march 2011 issue of SWAT, which also showed photo's taken in prison yards of prisioners training other prisoners on how to kill cops, very disturbiing but factual 5 page article.
Perhaps if a customer in the bank had a permit and was carrying at the time, the shooting might not have happened or not ended the way it did.
HEY IS IT ROBBER OR ROBBERS???
SO what is so low about bank robbery? These guys killed while robbing a bank – BAD! But robbing banks is not bad compared to robbing a 7/11 or some Mom or Pop store. Yeah, if your gonna rob something take from the pricks who have robbed the Nation. BTW notice they don't actually tell you this a bank robbery gone wrong. They know your level of sympathy will be reduced! I am sorry an officer was killed but I tell you after all these years of Banks robbing everyday working people, foreclosing on homes, and such activities….I cheer bank robbers!
edward_eubanks is another liar liberal that says that the NRA sells guns…
snitches don't know how bump-fire.
respect can be demanded.
edward_eubanks, only the government has been found to transfer guns to criminals and foreign enemies in mass quantities. (Lifetime member of the NRA here, Never have I bought a gun from the NRA. and GLAD that I own firepower to protect myself and my family.)
The local news is reporting eyewitness heard rounds from a "fully automatic" rifle.
Probably would have helped even more if the caller would have told the Officers that the scumbags were armed w/automatic rifles
Jack Hen … I hear BS spouted from people like you all the time about converting a semi-auto rifle into a fully automatic rifle in "about 5 minutes". Most people who say this are morons who think grinding down parts to make a rifle SLAM FIRE is how you make an automatic weapon. Maybe that's the case if you want it to jam or blow up in your face. Otherwise converting a rifle to fully automatic takes a bit of skill, time and knowledge. Even if you were able to install the correct fire control components in 5 minutes you're violating the law. Bombs can be more easily assembled in 5 minutes with less hassle than it takes to convert a BATFE approved receiver from semi-auto to fully-automatic.
What a moron.
A reward for a police officer's life, zero for everyone else. See a theme here?
This is truly bullcrap. This is another undocumented story by the fake press on the heels of the founder of the AK-47s day of morning. There is no way to verify these things anymore through our government or media as the media is an extention of our intelligent agencies and these media events are all staged and crisis actors are used such as the Columbine, the Oklahoma City Bombing, 9-11, Aurora, Sandy Hook, LAX shooting, etc etc etc look at "wellaware1(dot)com"
Who cares? It doesn't make any difference what kind of gun it is. Any gun could be used to kill another person. This is just being hyped because it's a police officer. Remember people. that guy that lives down the street from you, the one that parks his state or city owned vehicle in his driveway, he's better than you. When he dies, they use means possible to his killer, blame everything under the kitchen sink for his death and even offer reward money. Now, just imagine what the police would do if YOU were killed. About a tenth of that. Sound funny to you?
John Goldstar there is a Bump fire stock that cost about $800 that basically makes a gun "automatic"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1WhhKH3QVU
takes less than 30 seconds to install
Ibzan Castro you are just another moron. The "bump fire" stock is simply another trigger mechanism that uses the weapons own recoil to "pull the trigger again". It does not "basically makes a gun "automatic"". Yes it is faster than any human can pull the trigger with his finger, but it is still a semi-automatic and by definition, not an automatic weapon. Oh, and by the way, the "bump stick" (what the "bump stock" is based off of) has been around for many years but you did not happen to mention that fact. Please do a little actual research before you open your pie hole and display your ignorance.
I am sorry to the lost of the family. It is always a tragedy when an officer is lost. If you look at the picture of the gun man from the bank he has a pistol not a rifle. The statement above says that witnesses saw a gunman. Not sure how he switched from his pistol to a rifle that isn't seen any place. Simply i submit that the witnesses who say it was and AK 47 are lying.
Jack Hen , The difference is that pushing a hundred people out of a window would take a long time and it would be a fair fight. with an assault gun, or any gun for that matter, you can kill many in seconds.
I doubt if the cops know the difference between an AK-47 and an AK-74. Both can be modified automatic, but it takes special skills and tools to do so. These were probably bought or stolen from the Mexican cartels.
Hey if you want to be in the line of fire, expect to get shot at once in while. And by the way I love the religious comments on this blog. WTF this country has turned into a poverty ZONE for over half of the population. What do you think, that it is good for all the wealthy nontaxpayers and political crooks and cronies to control 97 % of the assets. That is all fucked up everywhere from Wednesday, no matter how you GLOSS it over. amen
some one out there knows who this COWARD is. now do the right thing and turn him in so some sort of justice can be dealt out to him. I will volunteer to pull the switch, trigger or what ever other device is deemed appropriate for this kind of heinous crime!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Shelly Richey Brown , and I easily could kill many in seconds using a vehicle as a weapon, using explosives, arson, etc. There are a lot of ways to kill if you are determined to do so. Blaming guns doesn't solve anything.
Don't be an idiot, if that is possible.
Your comment is wrong on so many levels.
What we really need are fewer idiots like yourself, Just ask the NRA>
John Goldstar been a gun smith for over 40 years and i can say with all certainty what i said ! has nothing to do with grinding down anything you simply change the action with another you can buy at any gun show or on line .cost about 100 bucks. they can be bought directly from hong kong if you know who to contact for 10 bucks each. or you can simply look up a expoled veiw of the action on any gun and have it made at most machine shops. it will be the same as the fully auto guns . so before you open that worm brush of a mouth get your facts right moron!!! if you watch tv you should have seen a show on a gun shop in la. where they built any kind of weapon you wanted for a price . they have made gattlin guns, 50cal machine guns, and many others on the show. they have even built tanks flame throwers and more! there are millions of folks with gun shops out there who do the same kind of things and most will build you what ever you want if you dont have the skills to do it yourself for a price! now go blow your smoke up someone elses butt i know what i am talking about!
semi or full auto only takes one bullet place right to kill! machine guns mostly watse bullets! if the robbers were smart which most are not,they could have had a snipper with a semi auto 22cal out front and as the good guys showed up they would have been caught in a crossfire with their backs to the snipper and taken out one by one not knowing what was going on till all were dead! all i am saying is guns dont kill pepole do ! i used a m-16 in war i never used the full auto on it if you did your whole clip was gone in a second ! slow well placed shots are more effective . a weapon on full auto may hit someone with on bullet out of 20 but slower planed shots can take out 20 for twenty rounds!
you had better do more than pray that he be caught, law enforcement is a better solution
John Goldstar , you sure know what B/S sounds like, it's probably in most of your vocabulary
Ibzan Castro In order to hit something with most full auto firearms beyond a few yards it is necessary to hold the weapon very firmly and shift your weight onto your forward foot (standing position).In order to make the so called "bump Fire" stocks work it is necessary to do everything completely wrong.That is, to hold the weapon loosely so that it can rebound which makes control at best nearly impossible.I once watched a shooter dump a 30 round magazine at a 24"x36" target at about 25 feet.The target was untouched.Such devices are mainly useful as noisemakers.Aimed semi auto fire is much more hazardous to your health.
Ibzan Castro In order to hit something with most full auto firearms beyond a few yards it is necessary to hold the weapon very firmly and shift your weight onto your forward foot (standing position).In order to make the so called "bump Fire" stocks work it is necessary to do everything completely wrong.That is, to hold the weapon loosely so that it can rebound which makes control at best nearly impossible.I once watched a shooter dump a 30 round magazine at a 24"x36" target at about 25 feet.The target was untouched.Such devices are mainly useful as noisemakers.Aimed semi auto fire is much more hazardous to your health.
There are at least 250,000 legally registered machine guns in the US.Owners of registered machine guns are the most law abiding group of gun owners.Only 3-4 violent felonies have been committed with registered machine guns since registration began 79 years ago in 1934 and 2 of those were committed by police officers.If unregistered machine guns were used in the Tupelo shooting ,which seems likely in view of these statistics,such weapons are already illegal.It seems that violent murdering criminals are undeterred by firearm laws.
Perhaps if the officers were armed…
Are we suppose to beleive that if the shooters were armed with shotguns the officer would still be alive.
NO IDIOT… MOST OF THE GUNS IN LATIN AMERICA WERE SOLD UNDER THE TABLE HERE IN THE UNITED STATES, BY GUN NUTS LIKE YOU!!! As for unsecured borders… the numbers of illegals coming across from Mexico were a HUGE flood during the Bush years… Now… under Obama, the net flow is less than zero… MORE ILLEGALS ARE LEAVING OR ARE GETTING DEPORTED THAN ARE COMING INTO THE US!!! NO THANKS TO RIGHT WING IDOTS LIKE YOU!!!
davidg_cal OH… WAIT…… YOU RE TALKING ABOUT BUSH'S ATTEMPT TO FIGURE OUT WHO IS SELLING GUNS TO THE DRUG CARTELS???… talking about Obama confused me… Turns out he had nothing to do with Fast and Furious!!!
John Dille have you ever heard of the el salvadoran /nicaragua conflict where the Soviet Union flooded central america with tons of soviet block weapons??. right now mexico is awash in those weapons, with the mexican rebels today using nothing but soviet weaponry.And what ,you think none of thoses military weapons will make it across in to the USA because of Obummer??? this is a preview of what is to come, next the drug gangs will be using grenades and RPG-7's thanks to Obummer, BUT NOOOOOO you will blame honest law abiding citizens and the NRA for soviet military weapons in the hands of criminals ???? john you are nuttier than ALL the fruitcakes..
me I think it really depends on who is using it. Of course in the video they put someone highly trained to shoot the weapon and he was fairly accurate. I feel like the same thing goes with regular automatic weapons. An untrained person wouldnt be able to hit anything. Thank you for being polite! Merry Christmas!
John Dille , do you have anything to say that is rooted in reality?
John Johnson Merry Christmas! No need for the abusive language. First, I know how the bumpfire works. I know what classifies a weapon as automatic is the lower receiver. The reason why I used "basically" is because it gives similar rate of fire. I did not need to mention the fact that the concept of bump fire has been around for a few years. I found it irrelevant.You are probably a good person. So theres no need to come off like a brute.
John Goldstar no stupid i have been a gun smith for over 40 year and i can assure you i do know what i am talking about!!! also these guns have been used by china and many countes in their military where you can oder the action by the thouhsands from china for about 20 bucks a pop some times less! and all anyone has to do is to have one of the action out of a full auto and you can have anyone with machine exsperiense to copy them by the hundreds after a jig is set up for them! also you must not have seen the show out of louisiania about the gun shop making anything you could ask for at a price!! huh smart ass?? all you are doing here is you got this big long tube running around trying to blow smoke up some ones butt like you know something !!!
do you mean with their bare hands while you have a gun? @ gail k dolly! yes there are many that can kill you with their bare hands before you can draw and fire! there was a lady cop here in columbia tn a day or so ago that got off duty went home to find someone in here home she with gun in hand had it taken from her and ran for her life he didnt but could have killed her with her own gun!!! he now has her belonging alone with her gun! but she didnt get hurt so gail yes someone can kill you with their bare hands even if you have your gun happens all the time!he could have killed her with bare hands or shot her with her gun or anything he chose to do at the point of over powering her and taking her gun!
John Goldstar here you go dum ass go to this link and you can order a complete fully suto ak 47 for 399 buck delivered to your door all you got to do is put it togther ! http://www.legionarms.com/categories/AK47-Parts-Kits
John Goldstar here you another link know it all!! http://www.weaponscombat.com/full-auto-conversion/ak-47-select or if you know a knowledgeable gun smith or anyone with machine shop skills you can have the samething done in your own home town!!! there is nothing one man can do that anyone else cant do with the right tools and knowledge to do it! i know many that can make you anything you want out of steel not that they would but there are many out there that will! before you run your mouth again know who you are talking to and what you are talking about so you dont show what a idiot you truly are!
John Goldstar here is a kid that shows you he could do it! and even thoe he dont in the video he is on the right track and knows what he is talking about unlike you john!!!!! http://youtu.be/7yBmiWUyTdI