Man charged with shooting at sheriff’s deputies in Puyallup. He was hit by return fire
A Spanaway man is facing assault charges after firing at Pierce County deputies several times on Tuesday in Puyallup, court records show.
Jeffrey Brian McCreary, 38, was charged with one count of drive-by shooting, three counts of second-degree assault and two counts of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, according to charging documents.
A plea of not guilty was entered on McCreary’s behalf during his Thursday arraignment. A court commissioner set his bail at $500,000, court records show.
Several 911 callers reported to police dispatch that the driver of a dark-colored Chevrolet Silverado truck was firing a rifle out of the window on Tuesday at 9:08 p.m. Pierce County Sheriff’s Department deputies responded and tried to find the man, who was later identified as McCreary, prosecutors wrote.
Prosecutors noted that the deputies involved were wearing full Sheriff’s Department uniforms with clear “police” markings. Their patrol vehicles were fully marked and equipped with police lights and sirens.
A 911 caller reported about 9:12 p.m. that the driver was driving east on 192nd Avenue East while firing at a red truck. There were about 10 shots fired. Later, McCreary allegedly entered the Crystal Point gated community. McCreary allegedly accelerated towards the deputies and passed them at a moderate speed. One deputy tried to overtake him in a patrol car, prosecutors wrote.
McCreary allegedly continued on, passing deputies in his truck. Deputies allegedly heard him fire his weapon twice and then three times. Then, he drove down an intersection at a “significant” rate of speed and was temporarily out of sight, charging documents show.
Soon after, deputies located McCreary driving at a high rate of speed before momentarily slowing down. When he approached the deputies’ vehicles, the six deputies fired their weapons, striking the Silverado multiple times. McCreary then stopped and was taken into custody. McCreary had a gunshot wound to the upper arm/shoulder, so he was taken to St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma, prosecutors wrote.
McCreary was later taken into Pierce County Jail where he remains on bail, according to jail records.
No deputies were injured, according to a Pierce County Sheriff’s Department media release.
The Pierce County Force Investigation Team was notified and is conducting an investigation.
A Palmetto SKS assault rifle and a pump shotgun were recovered in McCreary’s pickup. The weapons were empty. Several cartridge casings were found in the trunk.
McCreary has a prior felony conviction and is prohibited from owning or possessing a firearm.
The investigation is ongoing and detectives are trying to locate witnesses who initially called 911.
