A Hernando County man is facing several charges after deputies say he shot his girlfriend in the back and claimed it was an accident.

Hernando County deputies say a 911 hang-up call came in just after 6 a.m. Wednesday. When operators called the number back, 40-year-old Ronald Crisp answered.

Deputies say Crisp told 911 operators he was cleaning his gun when he accidentally shot his girlfriend. Operators say they heard a woman scream in the background and the call disconnected. Operators attempted to get back in touch with Crisp several times. When he finally answered, operators say a woman was heard screaming in the background asking for the phone. The call was then disconnected again.

Hernando County deputies who responded to the home on Reynolds Street in Dade City say they found a woman bleeding from her lower back. The woman was treated at the scene and was then taken to a local trauma center for advanced care.

When detectives spoke with Crisp at the scene, they say the man claimed he was “clearing” his gun when it accidentally went off, sending a round through the wall into the living room area. Crisp told them he then heard the woman screaming that she had been shot.

Once the victim was out of surgery, she spoke with detectives and told them the shooting was not accidental. Deputies say the woman told them she and Crisp had been arguing for a few days. According to a report from the sheriff’s office, the woman said Crisp had a pocketknife in his hands during the argument.

The woman claims, at some point, Crisp got a handgun. She told deputies she exchanged words with Crisp and walked out of the bedroom, closing the door behind her.

Detectives say the woman told them she “immediately heard a shot, then felt pain in her lower back.” When she screamed for Crisp to call 911, the victim told deputies he hesitated and then told her to go get his gun cleaning kit.

During a search of the home, detectives say they found a .380 caliber handgun with an altered serial number, a hidden short-barreled rifle with no identifiable serial number and a pocketknife. Deputies noted there was no hole in the wall where Crisp claimed there would be. A bullet hole was found in the bedroom door, deputies say.

Crisp was arrested and charged with aggravated battery with a firearm, shooting a deadly missile, tampering with a witness, possession of a firearm with an altered serial number and possession of a short-barreled rifle. He is being held on no bond.