Tupelo Police Officers Receive Awards, Commendations For Heroic Actions

TUPELO, Miss. (WCBI) –  First responders put their lives on the line daily, running to danger, while others run away from it. On Valentine’s morning, 14 Tupelo Police officers were recognized for their bravery.

Awards and commendations were presented to officers for taking life saving measures during a recent fire, solving a number of crimes, and heroic actions during the June 2016 chase and shootout with a suspect who had murdered his pregnant girlfriend.

In fact, the driver’s side door from a patrol car, shot by the suspect, was on display at the ceremony.

It was the first public awards ceremony for the Tupelo Police Department in years, and Chief Bart Aguirre says while officers don’t seek praise or accolades, it is good to highlight the many heroic acts.

“They’re pretty humble, all these guys want to do is just do their job, that’s all they want to do, each and everyone of them want to be able to go out there and do their job and come home, do their job to the best of their ability,” Chief Aguirre said.

The awards were presented during the regular meeting of the Police Advisory Board.