Man arrested for firing assault rifle, gun into air in Hammond

A man is expected to be charged with firing an assault rifle and a handgun into the air on Independence Day in northwest Indiana, police said.

The 46-year-old was arrested when officers patrolling in the 400 block of Detroit Street in Hammond saw muzzle flashes in the area, and found the man who they believed had fired the guns, Hammond police said. An AR-15 assault rifle and a semi-automatic handgun were confiscated, and formal charges are pending.

The day before, a 13-year-old boy was critically wounded after he was struck by falling bullet, which someone had fired into the air, in the 7300 block of Harrison Avenue in Hammond, police said at the time.

And a day before that, a bullet was found inside an office worker’s cubicle after it came through the roof, insulation and ceiling tile, and struck a calculator sitting on the desk, police said.

Detectives are investigating the incidents, and anyone with information should call police at (219) 852-2906.