Three arrested after lying to police when man got shot on ‘Bigfoot hunt’

Lying to the police is never a good idea, but three individuals in Oklahoma took it to a whole new level of stupidity when they began telling tales about Bigfoot — and wound up in jail as a result.

Omar Pineda and Joseph Smalley were in the woods in Rogers County on Saturday when 21-year-old Pineda got spooked and fired his gun, hitting Smalley in the back, according to KFOR. The men apparently walked to a nearby QuikTrip to call 911. When police arrived, the men explained they had been hunting Bigfoot, a story that officers immediately suspected was false.

“Any story that starts out that someone is on a hunt for Sasquatch, we probably have problems with you from the get go,” Rogers County Sheriff Scott Walton told KFOR.

Walton told the local Fox News affiliate that the duo originally explained someone had shot at them, but later told a more accurate account of the events.

Pineda was arrested for reckless conduct with a firearm and obstructing an officer. His father-in-law, Perry James, owned the property where Smalley was shot. James threw the gun used into a pond because he was a convicted felon and feared having the gun on his land. The 53-year-old was arrested for possessing a firearm and destruction of evidence. Pineda’s wife, 22-year-old Lacey Jane Pineda, was also arrested for obstructing an officer. She reportedly told police different accounts of Saturday’s events.

But if the group had simply told the truth, the Sheriff said they most likely would not have faced charges.

“If it had just been factual, upfront and truthful with us and explained that this was truly an accident, as strange as it might sound, we would have went ahead and investigated and probably nobody would have went to jail,” Walton told a local TV station.

He added that man hours had been wasted due to their dishonesty.

Smalley is in stable condition at a hospital and is expected to recover, though he did need surgery.

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