LYNNWOOD — A man suspected of shooting a stranger in the head reportedly gave police multiple versions of what happened.
The victim, 20, is in critical condition at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, according to court papers released on Thursday. The man was shot Wednesday while seated in a friend’s Honda outside Shari’s restaurant in the 19000 block of Highway 99.
Arvin Weathers, 35, was arrested several hours later at a clean-and-sober house. Snohomish County deputies found an abandoned pickup truck matching the suspect’s vehicle. The truck was registered to Weathers. Police also found a handgun in a ravine near the truck.
Weathers told police he’d gone to the restaurant to buy drugs.
He later said he’d picked up a man he’d seen walking down the street. According to court papers, Weathers explained that the man showed him a gun and handed it to him, but it went off accidentally while he was holding it. Weathers said he “freaked out” and drove off.
There’s no indication the victim and suspect knew each other or that they had any interaction before the shooting.
Weathers, a convicted felon, was booked for investigation of first-degree assault and two weapons crimes. The gun was stolen, according to court papers.
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