Update: At 10 a.m., the plane was circling above the Holly Springs National Forest in North Mississippi near the towns of Ripley, Falkner and Ashland.

The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reports that multiple authorities have identified the pilot as Cory Patterson of Shannon. Shannon posted the following message on Facebook:

“Sorry everyone. Never actually wanted to hurt anyone. I love my parents and sister this isn’t your fault. Goodbye.”

Shannon’s message was flooded with prayers and pleas from family, friends and others to land the plane safely.

Original Story: 

Mississippi officials were carefully monitoring a small airplane that was erratically circling for hours in Tupelo Saturday morning. Reports are that the pilot threatened to crash into a local Walmart store.

Tupelo Police say they were notified about the situation at 5 a.m.

The airplane veered out of the area shortly after 9 a.m.

Buildings along West Main Street in Tupelo were evacuated as the twin-engine turboprop airplane circled above.

“Citizens are asked to avoid that area until an all clear is given. With the mobility of an airplane of that type the danger zone is much larger than even Tupelo,” the police department said in a statement.

….

State law enforcement and emergency managers are closely tracking this dangerous situation. All citizens should be on alert and aware of updates from the Tupelo Police Department. https://t.co/hQ8GxcR8s0

— Governor Tate Reeves (@tatereeves) September 3, 2022

….

Governor Tate Reeves responded via social media Saturday morning.

“State law enforcement and emergency managers are closely tracking this dangerous situation,” Gov. Tate Reeves said in a statement. “All citizens should be on alert and aware of updates from the Tupelo Police Department.”

The FlightAware website indicates that the plane is Beechcraft King Air 90 turboprop owned by a local urologist.

Reports are that the plane was stolen from the Tupelo airport. The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reports that multiple authorities have identified the pilot as Cory Patterson of Shannon. Shannon is a 2011 Tupelo High School graduate. 

….

Currently we have a 29yr old who stole this plane & is threatening to crash it into something. Polices ,ambulances ,& fire trucks are everywhere. Everything is shutdown rn pic.twitter.com/AzebdIa3tP

— City King (@CityKing_Gank_) September 3, 2022