LAKE TAPPS, Wash. — A 33-year-old man is in custody after reportedly falling asleep in his truck next to a stranger’s garage in Washington state, then accidentally shooting himself when the resident confronted him.
According to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded about 6:40 a.m. Thursday to reports of a man in a truck firing shots at a property in the 2800 block of 170th Avenue East.
When deputies arrived, they found a 33-year-old man in the driveway area of the property in question. He was suffering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the leg and was taken into custody without incident.
Deputies learned that sometime overnight, the suspect was driving to visit an acquaintance in the South Hill area, but got lost and decided to park his truck alongside a garage at the property on 179th Avenue. The suspect reportedly used methamphetamine and then fell asleep inside his truck.
Thursday morning, the person who lives at the property noticed the unknown vehicle when she was pulling out of her driveway. The woman told deputies that she rolled down the window of her vehicle and verbally confronted the suspect.
The suspect reportedly awoke screaming and began firing a handgun. Multiple rounds went through the windshield and window of the suspect’s truck in the direction of the victim and her vehicle. One round also struck the suspect in the leg.
The woman was not injured.
The man was taken to an area hospital and is under guard while he is receiving medical treatment for his gunshot wound. He’ll be booked for assault in the first-degree when he’s released.