A routine custody swap in Washington state turned into a terrifying ordeal when a man was shot by his girlfriend’s estranged husband after a high-speed chase and a violent confrontation. The incident unfolded near the Kitsap County Fairgrounds in Bremerton on Saturday evening.
According to the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, the 21-year-old victim and his 31-year-old girlfriend were near the fairgrounds around 5:30 p.m. for a custody exchange. The woman was handing over her eight-year-old son to her estranged 40-year-old husband. After dropping her boyfriend off at the fairgrounds, she proceeded to complete the custody handover.
However, what should have been a routine exchange quickly escalated into chaos. After dropping off her son, the woman returned to the fairgrounds to pick up her boyfriend. It was at this point that her estranged husband followed her back to the location, pulled up, and began shooting at the couple.
As gunshots rang out, the couple tried to flee in their vehicle, but the enraged husband pursued them, continuing to fire at their car. The tense chase reached Nels Nelson Road, where the situation took a dangerous turn. The husband sped past the couple’s car, made a sharp U-turn, and intentionally rammed his vehicle into theirs head-on.
After the crash, both the husband and the boyfriend exited their vehicles and began a heated argument. Things quickly spiraled out of control when the husband drew a .22 caliber handgun and shot the boyfriend in the abdomen.
A witness to the scene managed to intervene, kicking the gun away from the three as they fought in the middle of the road. The fight escalated, with the husband and boyfriend ending up wrestling in a nearby ditch. By the time deputies arrived, the boyfriend had the husband pinned down in a headlock.
The injured boyfriend was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center for treatment, while the husband was transported to St. Michael’s Medical Center. Fortunately, the woman and her child were unharmed during the violent confrontation.
The estranged husband was later arrested and booked into the Kitsap County Jail on charges of first-degree assault and drive-by shooting. He is currently being held without bail as authorities continue their investigation into the violent altercation.