Tupelo shooting -- Police Sergeant Gale Stauffer was shot down on Monday afternoon when a masked gunman opened fire in a pawn store using a AK-47 assault rifle.

The police officer was shot dead by what witnesses called "machine gun fire" while another policeman had obtained serious injuries after the incident.

One of the witnesses, Kenny Steen, said he'd heard a violent racket which seemed to originate from a Tupelo pawn store. 

"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," the witness shared regarding the incident.

Steen claimed that he had arrived at the scene and witnessed the actual shooting of the police officer. He shared that as soon as he came into the scene of the crime, he saw Stauffer falling and going down fast.

The real story behind the Tupelo shooting is that a gunman wearing a mask and carrying an AK-47 assaut rifle stepped into a BanCorpSouth branch in Gloster Creek Village and demanded money from the cash registers. 

Police officers were called into the scene and Stauffer and the other officer had been the first ones to respond to the call. The masked gunman shot Stauffer as the police officer enterned the vicinity.

Issues arose however when it was discovered that the Tupelo shooting would not have happened and could have been avoided entirely if not for the commuter train's position which had basically trapped the gunman and the police officers who responded in the scene of the crime.

Police investigators have confirmed that AK-47 assault rifles had been used in the fatal Tupelo shooting. Jason Shelton, mayor of Tupelo, released a statement on the shooting's investigation 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," the Tupelo mayor said regarding the shooting.