Memphis Police Officer Shot And Killed During Traffic Stop; Suspect Still At Large

Update as of 05:45 a.m. EDT: The police officer shot dead in Memphis, Tennessee during a traffic stop Saturday has been identified by the police department as 33-year-old Sean Bolton, who had been with the force since October 2010, according to an NBC News report.

Original story below

A police officer was shot and killed in Memphis, Tennessee during a traffic stop Saturday night, according to media reports.

The officer was reportedly shot around 9:15 p.m., by the occupant of a vehicle that he had stopped near the city's Cottonwood and Perkins roads. He was shot multiple times, and a bystander alerted authorities to the shooting using a police radio shortly afterwards, KPHO reported.

The officer was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Authorities asked media not to publish his name, to allow time for his next of kin to be notified, though some outlets did name him. IBTimes will not name the officer until confirmation that his family has been notified.

The suspect in the shooting is reportedly still at large.

Memphis Police Director Toney Armstrong told reporters: “We’ve been here before. Sad to say, we’ve been here before. This is my third time in the four years I’ve been director. It doesn’t get any easier. This is not only a difficult time for me as a director, but for all the officers behind me and our city as well.”

“We won’t make any political statements here. But once again, this is evidence that there are so many guns on the streets in the wrong hands,” he added according to a WHBQ report.

The officer had reportedly served in the U.S. Marine Corps prior to joining the Memphis police, including a tour in Iraq, the Memphis Commercial Appeal reported.

This officer is the first Memphis police officer to die in the line of duty since Martoiya Lang was shot in December 2012, according to WREG.

This is a developing story. Check back for further updates.