(CNN) -- Police charged 18-year-old Devin Darnell Moore with capital murder Saturday in the deaths of two police officers and a dispatcher with the Fayette Police Department.

Moore was being booked on vehicle theft charges about 5:30 a.m. [6:30 a.m. EDT] in this town in northwestern Alabama when he apparently grabbed a gun from one of his captors and fatally shot Officers Arnold Strickland and James Crump and dispatcher Ace Mealer before fleeing in a patrol car, District Attorney Chris McCool told CNN.

"Basically, they were shot and killed on duty in the Fayette Police Department early this morning," he said.

Fayette Mayor Ray Nelson said he received a phone call about the shootings and drove to the police station.

"It was just not a pretty scene," Nelson told reporters. "It's just a tragedy for our community."

Firefighters in a station adjacent to the police department heard the shots and called authorities, the mayor said.

The suspect apparently took a gun from one of the officers while he was out of handcuffs for fingerprinting, Nelson said.

"My understanding is that he didn't have a weapon when he was arrested," Nelson said. The FBI was aiding the investigation.

Police found Moore inside the patrol car in a rural area of Lowndes County, Mississippi, about a 45-minute drive from Fayette, where they took him into custody without further incident, McCool said.

Moore waived extradition and was being returned to Alabama, where he was to be taken to the Pickens County Jail in Carrollton, McCool said.

He will likely be arraigned Monday in Fayette County District Court, McCool said.

Asked whether he would seek the death penalty against Moore, who graduated from Walker County High School two weeks ago, turned 18 on May 15 and appears to have had no previous arrest record, McCool said, "It's a little early to talk about that." But, he added, "It certainly bears all the hallmarks of a capital case."

Outside the police department Saturday afternoon, a group of men wearing police officer T-shirts huddled and prayed. Black ribbons were tied to signs in the parking lot.

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Why don't all Police departments require that all sidearms be locked in a lockbox during booking?

That would have prevented this.

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They didn't say whether he has a prior record or not but being charged with vehicle theft ain't the end of the world.

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Yes they did read carefuly next time:[red] Asked whether he would seek the death penalty against Moore, who graduated from Walker County High School two weeks ago, turned 18 on May 15 and appears to have had no previous arrest record, McCool said, "It's a little early to talk about that." But, he added, "It certainly bears all the hallmarks of a capital case."[/red]

On another part of it, why the hell did they take the cuffs off to finger print. Last person i saw getting printed had cuffs on them?