CORINTH, Miss. — A manhunt is underway in Alcorn County for the man who shot a Corinth police officer with his own gun.
22-year-old Kevin Parker has only been with the department eight months. He is also an Army National Guardsman.
Police said he was shot in the chest and the shoulder while responding to a report of a prowler on Bell School Road. His bulletproof vest saved his life.
Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, Mississippi Highway Patrol and the U.S. Marshals Service are all helping in the search.
WREG spoke to the woman who made that first call to the Corinth Police Department because she heard something strange outside her house.
Corinth resident Brenda Nanney said she heard something strange around 2:30 a.m. Wednesday.
“I could tell there was a car running, and my dogs were going crazy,” she said.
Nanney said there have been break-ins in the neighborhood, so she called police.
Officers did not find anyone, but Parker decided to come back around 4:30 a.m. to check on Nanney again.
This time, Chief Ralph Dance said a man ran out in front of Parker’s car.
“He said he almost clipped him with the car,” he said.
Dance said Parker turned on his blue lights, radioed for backup and told the man to stop. Instead, the man charged towards him.
Parker drew his gun, but the suspect was already on top of him.
“He grabbed the gun and was able to turn it back on the officer and made it discharge into the officer’s chest,” Dance said.
Parker’s vest stopped the chest shot, but he was also shot in the shoulder.
Parker never let go of the gun, and the man took off running.
Dance said it is a prime example of just how quickly a situation can turn deadly.
“I get tired of hearing people say unarmed people shouldn’t be shot if they’re attacking you, you’ve got to defend yourself.”
As police continue to hunt for the shooter, Nanney said she is terrified and this morning convinced herself it is time to move.
“I’m still kind of in a daze, because it was just way too close for comfort. I can’t believe something like that happened so close to me.”
There’s no solid description of the suspect at this time. The Marshals Service is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.
