A man driving a stolen car was shot at by an armed citizen who went looking for stolen property at a Tacoma homeless encampment near Cheney Stadium on Monday after the driver reportedly bore down on the man and a companion at high speed, police said.
The man driving the car was found wounded and arrested Tuesday evening in the same general area.
The person who opened fire was not arrested, according to Tacoma police spokesperson Wendy Haddow. She did not identify that person.
Haddow gave this account of the events:
Two people, in an attempt to recover stolen property, went to the encampment around 3:30 p.m. Monday. The access point is near the parking lot for the Boy Scouts of America building in the 4800 block of South 19th Street.
"They found there's a stolen (truck) canopy and some (beer) kegs that had been stolen from Cheney Stadium," Haddow said.
The people also found a car they believed was stolen. A man at the scene threatened to kill the citizens, Haddow said. The individuals then called police. Police confirmed the vehicle was stolen.
When officers arrived, they told the citizens to wait near the parking lot while they walked down toward the encampment on a dirt road.
When police confronted the alleged thief, he got in the stolen car and drove away "at a high rate of speed," according to the officers. The car soon approached the area where the citizens were standing.
"The car was coming right at them, and the community members felt in danger for their lives and shot at the suspect," Haddow said.
The officers heard the gunshots and put out a "shots fired" call over the police radio. Police were initially unsure who fired the shots. Haddow did not think the officers were in the line of fire.
"As long as they were down the hill, the bullets should have gone over them," she said.
After the vehicle was hit by at least two rounds, the suspect turned the car around and was able to get away, possibly by driving on the Scott Pierson Trail. The car was later found abandoned near near south 31st and Washington streets.
The car had bullet holes in it, Haddow said.
Suspect arrested
On Tuesday evening, the 40-year-old suspect was found and arrested in the same vicinity of the shooting.
Haddow said the person had a wound on his head from Monday's incident. He was transported to a local hospital for treatment. When released, he will be arrested for possession of stolen property and aggravated assault. The assault charge stems from driving toward the citizens, Haddow said.
The case will be forwarded to prosecutors to determine if any charges will be brought against the shooter.
