Hunter Arrested After Allegedly Shooting Pilot
ADAMS COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4) - Deputies are investigating a bizarre confrontation that happened in rural Adams county Tuesday night.
Ultralight pilot James Johnson says he was flying his aircraft near 64th Avenue and Calhoun Byers Road checking his irrigation system.
Johnson says almost immediately after wandering just south of his property he heard what sounded like gunshots, "I turned around and saw a guy flipping me off and pointing a gun at me," he said.
Below he spotted two hunters.
One of them Johnson says fired a shotgun at him sending pellets into his aircraft.
"I felt the stinging in my leg & I was kind of freaked out so I flew back home," Johnson said.
He landed, called authorities and then went to confront the two men himself.
"I got a hold of his gun and we wrestled around with a shotgun."
When deputies arrived they arrested Frank Urban for second degree assault. According to the Adams County Sheriff's Office, Urban and one other man were legally dove hunting in the area when the incident occurred.
Urban says he was advised not to speak out about the case and the sheriff's office released little information about why he would have fired at the aircraft.
Johnson has his own idea, "He said that I was flying in an active hunting zone."
