Apr 25, 2016 2 min read

A Washington man was arrested early Monday by city police after he allegedly fired several shots in the 700 block of North Main Street.

Robert Lee James, 26, of 75 E. Walnut St., was taken into custody after he was spotted by state police several blocks away.

A resident of the area flagged police down about 2:20 a.m. He told police that he was putting garbage out when he saw two men arguing not far from where he was standing. The witness told police that the two men were yelling at each other when he heard the sound of two shots being fired from what he believed was a small-caliber handgun. He then heard one shot that he believed came from a large-caliber handgun.

The witness told police he then saw a black man with short hair wearing a dark, hooded shirt with white stripes run south down an alley before turning into a driveway. He called 911 but lost sight of the man, who was runing near North Main and Brady Avenue. As the gunman ran under a streetlight, the witness said he could see a small, dark revolver in his right hand.

State police called city police after stopping a man fitting the description near the intersection of North Main and Walnut Street. A trooper told police that the man, later identified as James, appeared very nervous and was out of breath.

The witness was taken to the location and identified James as one of the men involved in the argument and the man he saw running with a gun in his hand.

There was no indication what happened to the second man involved in the argument, and police did not find a gun when they arrested James.

James was arraigned before District Judge Joshua Kanalis on charges of reckless endangerment, persons not to possess a firearm and carrying a firearm without a license. He was placed in Washington County Jail on $10,000 bond. A preliminary hearing is set for May 4 before District Judge Robert Redlinger.