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Thief shoots himself with stolen gun
TAKEN FROM PARKED CAR: He was handling the loaded weapon.
By JAMES HALPIN
[email protected]
Published: September 22, 2007
Last Modified: September 22, 2007 at 01:52 AM
A man who stole a gun from a parked car shot himself in the leg only moments later as he fiddled with the weapon, Anchorage police said Friday.
The man, who has not yet been charged with a crime, was roaming among parked vehicles in an East Anchorage neighborhood, stealing valuables, when he came up with the handgun, according to police. He was accompanied in his exploits that day, Sept. 7, by an unnamed woman who was driving a red Audi sedan, Anchorage Police Department spokesman Lt. Paul Honeman said.
The man began "manipulating" the weapon, a Glock, and it went off, striking him in the left leg, Honeman said.
"It's like the Darwin Awards," Honeman said.
The woman helped the man get to a nearby residence, where they called for medical help.
Officers went to the 3500 block of East 19th Avenue about 7 a.m., Honeman said. They found him with a wound that Honeman described as a "through and through." The man was treated at a hospital and released, Honeman said.
The woman had already left in her Audi but was later found in a mobile home park on the 3300 block of Boniface Parkway. Officers recovered the car and the Glock there, Honeman said.
No charges have been filed because, in part, the victim hasn't been identified at this point, Honeman said.
"We don't know where he got the gun or where he shot himself," Honeman said. "One of the issues is that we're looking for a victim of the crime."
The weapon is described only as a Glock automatic pistol, and its caliber is not being released to help police in identifying the rightful owner, who may not know the gun has been stolen, Honeman said.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms is also tracing the handgun, Honeman said, but that could take up to six weeks to complete. Even then, it will only tell police who first bought it, not necessarily who its current owner is, he said.
Once an owner is located, the wounded man could face charges of felony theft of a firearm, Honeman said.
The weapon's owner will not likely face any criminal penalties, Honeman said, because it is not a crime to store a loaded gun in a car.
"It's just stupid," he said.
More than 1 million firearms are stolen nationwide each year, Honeman said. Of those, more than half are handguns. In Anchorage, one in four handgun thefts take place in unoccupied, parked vehicles. Many of them are left unlocked, he said.
"It's just a staggering amount. There's too many instances and it's too often," Honeman said. "You're more likely in this city to be a victim of property crime than any other crime."
http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/crime/story/9322233p-9237368c.html
TAKEN FROM PARKED CAR: He was handling the loaded weapon.
By JAMES HALPIN
[email protected]
Published: September 22, 2007
Last Modified: September 22, 2007 at 01:52 AM
A man who stole a gun from a parked car shot himself in the leg only moments later as he fiddled with the weapon, Anchorage police said Friday.
The man, who has not yet been charged with a crime, was roaming among parked vehicles in an East Anchorage neighborhood, stealing valuables, when he came up with the handgun, according to police. He was accompanied in his exploits that day, Sept. 7, by an unnamed woman who was driving a red Audi sedan, Anchorage Police Department spokesman Lt. Paul Honeman said.
The man began "manipulating" the weapon, a Glock, and it went off, striking him in the left leg, Honeman said.
"It's like the Darwin Awards," Honeman said.
The woman helped the man get to a nearby residence, where they called for medical help.
Officers went to the 3500 block of East 19th Avenue about 7 a.m., Honeman said. They found him with a wound that Honeman described as a "through and through." The man was treated at a hospital and released, Honeman said.
The woman had already left in her Audi but was later found in a mobile home park on the 3300 block of Boniface Parkway. Officers recovered the car and the Glock there, Honeman said.
No charges have been filed because, in part, the victim hasn't been identified at this point, Honeman said.
"We don't know where he got the gun or where he shot himself," Honeman said. "One of the issues is that we're looking for a victim of the crime."
The weapon is described only as a Glock automatic pistol, and its caliber is not being released to help police in identifying the rightful owner, who may not know the gun has been stolen, Honeman said.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms is also tracing the handgun, Honeman said, but that could take up to six weeks to complete. Even then, it will only tell police who first bought it, not necessarily who its current owner is, he said.
Once an owner is located, the wounded man could face charges of felony theft of a firearm, Honeman said.
The weapon's owner will not likely face any criminal penalties, Honeman said, because it is not a crime to store a loaded gun in a car.
"It's just stupid," he said.
More than 1 million firearms are stolen nationwide each year, Honeman said. Of those, more than half are handguns. In Anchorage, one in four handgun thefts take place in unoccupied, parked vehicles. Many of them are left unlocked, he said.
"It's just a staggering amount. There's too many instances and it's too often," Honeman said. "You're more likely in this city to be a victim of property crime than any other crime."
http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/crime/story/9322233p-9237368c.html
