Man's death ruled an accident

The Daily Inter Lake

The death of a man who shot himself in the eye with a .22-caliber rifle was an accident, Flathead County Sheriff Mike Meehan said.

Tyson Armijo, 22, was pronounced dead Wednesday evening at Kalispell Regional Medical Center.

The .22-caliber rifle, which had a portion of the barrel illegally sawed off, was one of several firearms Armijo was loading Tuesday into a car parked outside a friend's home on First Avenue South in Hungry Horse.

According to investigators, Armijo slipped backward on some ice and the rifle went off, sending one round into his left eye.

Armijo was at the residence picking up at least five guns being held by Billy Don Cummings, 48.

Armijo was taken to Kalispell Regional Medical Center in critical condition and placed in the intensive care unit. The bullet, which entered his head just below his left eye and never exited, lodged in the back of his skull.

While investigating the shooting, deputies discovered that Cummings had a warrant out of Bonner County, Idaho, for allegedly sexually abusing a minor. He was arrested without incident Wednesday evening by the Flathead County SWAT team.

The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Flathead County Sheriff's Office are investigating why Cummings was in possession of so many firearms and are looking into filing gun charges, Meehan said.

"We've still got a lot of interviews to do on it," he added. "We're still working it from the gun angle."

Cummings also is being held for identity theft pending allegations he was using a dead man's name to alleviate some of his debt. That charge, which is still under review by the Flathead County Attorney's Office, could be prosecuted either locally or in federal court, Meehan said.

Armijo was with his mother outside Cummings' residence when the rifle fired. She immediately called 911, sheriff's deputies said.

He was pronounced dead at about 8:15 p.m. Wednesday.