Authorities are looking for the above car and scumbag in connection with an armed bank robbery and the murder of a Tupelo police officer Monday afternoon. From djournal.com:
The officers were responding to a bank robbery call from BancorpSouth at 430 S. Gloster Street around 3:15 p.m. Officers confronted the suspects and pursued them as they headed north on Gloster Street. A gunfight ensued, Aguirre said. The suspects jumped out and immediately began firing at the officers.
Stauffer was pronounced dead at 3:46 p.m.
He had been a corporal with the Tupelo Police Department since 2005, according to his Facebook profile. He worked as a jailer for the Lee County Sheriff’s Office from January 2004 until November 2005 and was in the Louisiana Army National Guard from 1998 to 2008. He received a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and corrections from the University of Mississippi in 2011, according to LinkedIn.
Stauffer listed Baton Rouge, La., as his original hometown. He and his wife, Beth, have two young children, Dixie and Skip. He is the son of Debbie Brangenberg, executive director of the Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association Tupelo Mayor Jason Shelton called it “a day of great loss and tragedy.”
“We ask the community to provide any information you can,” Mayor Jason Shelton said. “And during this time, particularly this time of year, continued thoughts and prayers. When tragedies happen, we just have to come together as a city.”
Shantiqua Shumpert, speaking to a Daily Journal reporter on the scene, said she was in a car with two adults and a child, between the police and a suspects when the man walked around her car toward the police.
“The police told him to get back in the car, and the next thing I heard were shots,” she said.As for the manhunt:
At least one of the officers was shot in the head, according to eyewitnesses. Authorities also said multiple suspects were believed to have left the Carnation Street scene in a white Yukon SUV. A citizen called in “officer down” using one of the radios of fallen officers.
The Federal Bureau of Investigations is handling the investigation, which is now focused on a male suspect said to be about 5-feet-9 to 6-feet tall, thin, with light complexion, possibly African American. The suspect may be in a charcoal color, medium-sized, four-door sedan, possibly a Chrysler 200 or a Honda of some type. He also may be on foot, said FBI Special Agent in Charge Daniel McMullen during a 10 p.m. press conference. The suspect may have been injured and the car may have gunfire damage, McMullen said. He also may be heavily armed. “This is a very dangerous person we need to get off the streets,” said McMullen, who added there may be other suspects. The care also could be a rental, because bar codes were seen on some of the windows of the vehicle. Anyone with information on the suspect(s) whereabouts is asked to call Crimestoppers at (800) 773-TIPS or the Tupelo Police Department at (662) 841-6491. The FBI has offered a reward of $50,000, which has been matched by BancorpSouth, for a total reward of $100,000. McMullen said information on the suspect is preliminary and the investigation is ongoing. The suspect is believed to be left handed, he said, and witnesses have identified the person’s accent as being unique. He is believed to have been wearing khaki or cargo pants, white Converse-type shoes, a long-sleeve jacket with a possible “Aztec” design and a blue ski mask.