A man pursuing a pickup full of items stolen from his home was injured Monday when the alleged thief fired a shot at him, according to the Pierce County Sheriff's Department.
Department spokesman Sgt. Darren Moss said the gunshot victim was in the South Hill Walmart parking lot Monday evening when he happened to notice that a white Ford F250's cargo bed contained some of his stolen items.
The victim slashed the truck's tires, but the suspected thief got into the F250 and drove away.
"The victim gets back into his truck and follows," Moss said. "And somehow the suspect was able to stop, get out of the truck and shoot into the victim's truck and hit the victim."
Moss said the victim, who suffered a grazing wound to the head, stopped pursuing the F250 after being hit. The suspected thief then abandoned the pickup in a parking lot one block south of the Walmart and fled.
According to Moss, deputies found a rifle in the pickup and a stolen rifle behind a nearby bush. Pierce County sheriffs have not yet identified the suspect.
The victim first contacted law enforcement Monday morning to report a home burglary from the prior evening, according to Moss. The report lists a variety of items, including the victim's motorcycle, as being stolen. Moss said that the Sheriff's Department found some of the burglarized items in the F250.
According to Moss, a few hours prior to the shooting, the victim spotted a Chevy Suburban that had also been stolen from him. Moss said that the victim confronted the person driving the SUV, and the driver gave the keys to him. Moss did not know whether the Suburban was stolen in the reported burglary or in a separate incident.
In general, law enforcement does not advise people to engage with potential assailants without the help of police, Moss said.
"We always tell people, don't confront them," he said. "You can be a really great witness, take pictures, tell us where the car is. Don't go up and approach them because maybe we can get in the area and try to stop them before they leave."
According to Moss, the victim sustained minor injuries from the bullet and was transported to St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma. Moss said that the victim was expected to be released from the hospital sometime Tuesday.
