WYALUSING -- A cop in Bradford County has been suspended for allegedly selling an AK-47 out of the back of the patrol car last week.
Laceyville Borough Police Officer Matt Chamberlain was on duty at the time of the apparent gun sale.
"I was shocked, I was shocked. Especially when there's an automatic* weapon involved and the public was exposed," said Phillip Brewer, the mayor of Laceyville.
After this incident, the mayor of Laceyville suspended Chamberlain without pay.
"It's one isolated incident, but you have to deal with it. You can't let this slide," said Brewer.
People in Bradford County could not believe a cop would sell a gun, on the taxpayers' dollar.
"It's pretty scary knowing that someone in law enforcement could be out selling guns to people," said Shawn Burns from Lawton.
Ashley Fiori from Forksville said, "They know the law, ya know? They're supposed to be protecting us!"
"For him to do something so foolish, it just boggled my mind," said Jean Reinhart, the mayor of Wyalusing.
It was in the parking lot at the Dandy Mary when witnesses said that Laceyville cop was selling an AK-47 out of the back of his police cruiser. People said it was bad enough that he was selling the gun, but at one point he walked away from his vehicle and the AK-47.
"There could have been something tragic could have happened here," said Reinhart.
Newswatch 16 tried calling Chamberlain for his side of the story, but there no answer.
As a result of Chamberlain's suspension, the Laceyville Police Department is only operating with one officer, the chief.
But Laceyville Police Chief Scott Perry has a message for the residents of Laceyville and Wyalusing: "It's perfectly understandable, you're concerned about the incident but the police are here for you and we need to get through it."
The Laceyville Borough Council will hold a special meeting Friday at the Laceyville Public Library at 8pm to decide officer Chamberlain's fate.
*6/24/14 - Laceyville Police Chief Scott Perry confirms that the AK-47 in question is, in fact, a semi-automatic weapon. Newswatch 16 apologizes for any confusion.