DPS: Big-rig driver admits accidentally shooting himself

The Republic | azcentral.com

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A big-rig driver who reported being shot in the leg Friday morning on Interstate 10 later admitted to investigators he had accidentally shot himself, the Arizona Department of Public Safety said.

DPS received a report Friday morning from a trucker who reported being shot while driving west on I-10 near Buckeye.

The gunshot-wound victim pulled off the freeway at Verrado Way and was transported to a hospital, according to DPS Trooper Kameron Lee.

Officials early Friday said they were investigating where the gunshot came from.

In an updated statement released Friday evening, DPS said the man accidentally shot himself.

"During an investigative interview with the commercial truck driver, he admitted to state detectives, that he accidentally shot himself within the cab of the commercial truck and falsely reported having been the victim of a shooting,'' the DPS statement said.

Further information was not available, and DPS said the investigation was continuing.