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[h=4]Police identify suspect in Memphis officer's killing[/h]Police in Memphis identified a<span style="color: Red;">*</span>29-year-old convicted bank robber as man who allegedly killed a city cop during a traffic stop on Saturday.
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Twenty-nine-year-old Tremaine Wilbourne is believed to have shot and killed a Memphis, Tennessee police officer during a traffic stop.
Video provided by Newsy Newslook
This undated photo released by the Memphis Police Department shows officer Sean Bolton, 33, who was fatally shot during a traffic stop on Aug. 1 in Memphis.(Photo: AP)
Police in Memphis identified a 29-year-old convicted bank robber as the man who allegedly killed a city cop during a traffic stop on Saturday.
Police director Toney Armstrong on Sunday evening told reporters that officer Sean Bolton apparently interrupted a drug deal and that after "some type of physical altercation," Bolton was shot and killed by a passenger in the car. Armstrong said police were searching for 29-year-old Tremaine Wilbourn and had issued a warrant for his arrest.
Wilbourn had been free on supervised release by the U.S. Western District Court for a 122-month sentence for bank robbery, Armstrong said. He now faces a first-degree murder charge.
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Armstrong said the drug transaction in question amounted to "less than two grams of marijuana," which constituted "a misdemeanor citation and a fine."
Holding up a photo of Wilbourn, Armstrong said, "I think it's safe to say that when you look at this individual, you're looking at a coward. He's a coward. You gun down, you murder a police officer for less than two grams of marijuana. You've literally destroyed a family. Look at the impact that that's had on this department, this community, this city, for less than two grams of marijuana."
The U.S. Marshal's Service has offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to Wilbourn's arrest. The (Memphis) Commercial quoted Memphis Mayor A C Wharton as saying he will ask the city council to match that amount.
Police were looking for Wilbourn as part of an intense manhunt. Bolton, 33, was the third Memphis officer killed since 2011.
Tremaine Wilbourn<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: Memphis Police Department)
Earlier, Armstrong said a member of the public called dispatch at 9:18 p.m. CT Saturday, using Bolton's radio to report that the officer had been shot multiple times. Officers found Bolton at the scene and rushed him to Regional Medical Center in critical condition, but he was later pronounced dead, Armstrong said.
"There is a theme that black lives matter," said a sullen Armstrong, who is black. "At the end of the day, we have to ask ourselves, do all lives matter? All lives matter … and this is just a reminder of how dangerous this job is."
The shooting set off an intense manhunt that ended with officers surrounding an apartment building in the city. Police did not immediately identify the person of interest who was apprehended.
Armstrong said his department was once again in mourning.
"It's a difficult time for all the officers you see standing behind me," he said. "And difficult time for the city as well."
Mayor A C Wharton joined Armstrong in asking the prayers for the officer's family, the Memphis police department and the city. He also pointed to the proliferation of guns as adding to the dangers that officers face.
"Once again, we won't make any political statements here, but this again is evidence that there are so many guns on our streets in the wrong hands," Wharton said. "Men and women in blue have rules of engagement they have to follow, but … they are dealing with people who have no rules of engagement."
Bolton, who joined the force in 2010, served a tour in Iraq and studied political science at the University of Memphis.
In July 2011, Memphis Officer Tim Warren was killed while responding to a shooting. In December 2012, Officer Martoiya Lang was killed while serving a warrant.
"This is my third time in four years, and it doesn't get any easier," Armstrong said.
Contributing: Greg Toppo, USA TODAY
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