Law enforcement responded on a house south of Safford after receiving reports that a man was firing a gun inside the house. The reporting party said that her son had possibly fired a gun in her house and she was worried that he might have shot her husband. No less than nine deputies and police officers converged on the house expecting an active shooter situation.
Upon arrival, authorities set up a perimeter around the residence. A man was held at gunpoint after approaching the scene from the back of the house. While held at gunpoint, the man was ordered to show his hands. He complied but apparently had nothing in his hands. He was ordered to the ground, placed in handcuffs and escorted to the back of a patrol vehicle.
Officers conducted a sweep of the residence. An elderly man was found sleeping inside the residence. When asked if he heard any gun shots or loud noises, the man said that he had not. Officers did not find any firearms in the residence.
The reporting party said that she didn’t think that her son, the alleged shooter, had been taking his medications and was yelling when she walked out of the house. While outside, she heard a loud bang that she thought was a gunshot. She told officers that her son was not supposed to be at the house but did not have a restraining order.
The son told authorities that he smashed his own TV in the backyard. When asked why he smashed it, he said that it was his and he wanted to smash it. He said that he used a stick to hit it. He denied having an argument with his mother prior to smashing his TV. The man said the gunshots his mother reported was probably him smashing his TV. The mother admitted that she never saw a gun and that the sound she heard could have been her son smashing the TV.
The son was taken to another location for the night and the mother was encouraged to contact the court for a protective order if she felt she needed one.
