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Mario Edward Garnett, 40, was shot and killed by a Phoenix police detective on Dec. 28, 2013, while robbing a bank, ending a five day, three state crime spree that had already left one Mississippi police officer dead, authorities said.

Garnett's spree began Dec. 23, 2013, when he tried to rob a Bank of America branch in Atlanta, according to police and the FBI. When a teller would not hand over money, he instead robbed a customer at an ATM outside and fled. Hours later that same day, he held up a BancorpSouth branch in Tupelo, Mississippi. As officers responding to the robbery approached a car stuck in traffic near a railroad crossing, someone inside opened fire, killing Sgt. Kevin "Gale" Stauffer, 38, and wounding Officer Joseph Maher, 27.

Investigators said cell phone records, matching clothing and similar statements made during each holdup tied the same man to the Atlanta, Tupelo and, five days later, Phoenix robberies.

On the morning of Dec. 28, Garnett walked into a BBVA Compass Bank branch near West Thomas Road and North 31st Avenue in west Phoenix wearing a ski mask and bandanna, according to police and surveillance video released after the shooting. A witness inside a nearby restaurant called 911 and stayed on the line, describing the scene as Garnett left the bank carrying a bag of cash.

Phoenix police officer Ty Wilson was arriving at the bank as Garnett came out and came under fire before he could get out of his patrol car, police said. Detective Fabian Gonzalez, who happened to be nearby on an unrelated call, ran toward the gunfire from more than 100 feet away and fired six rounds, fatally wounding Garnett. He was pronounced dead after being taken to a hospital. No officers or bank employees were hurt. The Bureau of Justice Assistance later credited Gonzalez's actions with saving Wilson's life and awarded him the Congressional Badge of Bravery.

Because Garnett did not survive the shooting, no charges were filed in either state. Maher was released from the hospital Dec. 31, 2013, though police said he faced a long recovery. Stauffer remains the only Tupelo officer killed in the line of duty in the department's history.

Records show Garnett had been released from federal prison in July 2013, about five months before the spree, after serving time for posting threats against President Barack Obama on the White House website in 2010.