On Thursday, July 23rd, 2015 at 9:27 p.m. the Pinal County Sheriff’s 9-1-1 Communications Center received a call regarding shots fired in the 1100 block of North Justice Drive, Oracle.
When deputies arrived on scene, they learned from a witness, that Nathaniel Buck Harrison(age 38 of Oracle) came over to the residence uninvited and fired a bullet from a handgun
inside of the home.
Deputies attempted to get Harrison to come out of the residence but he refused. They set up a perimeter around the residence and eventually Harrison came out and was taken into custody.
Harrison refused to answer any questions.
Sheriff Paul Babeu stated, “The victim (age 38) who was inside of the residence with Harrison when deputies responded, said Harrison came over to his residence and came inside without his permission or knowledge. Harrison accused the victim of being a “rat” and sending his friend to prison. Harrison found a board inside of the residence and hit the victim in the head with it so hard, the board broke in half. Harrison told the victim he was going to “kill” him as he attempted to get a rattlesnake, which he brought with him to bite the victim, but the snake wouldn’t bite. Harrison made the victim kneel down on the floor and he then fired a 45 caliber bullet out of a handgun into a speaker box on the floor which was located near the victim’s foot.”
A short time later, according to the victim, both he and Harrison heard the sound of sirens coming and knew deputies were on their way. Harrison attempted to hide the pistol under a couch located in the kitchen.
Harrison was booked into the Pinal County Jail for Endangerment, Aggravated Assault, Criminal Trespassing, Disorderly Conduct with a Weapon, Possession of a Deadly Weapon during the Commission of a Felony Offense, Unlawful Discharge of a Firearm and Threatening and Intimidating. Harrison already has an extensive criminal history. Sheriff Paul Babeu continued,
Sheriff Paul Babeu continued,“Harrison is currently being held on a $50,000 bond. The victim in this case told deputies he is terrified that if Harrison is released from custody he will in fact kill him. This is the first case I have heard where a victim attempted to use a venomous snake to kill or injure his victim. The snake was found by deputies inside of the residence and after it was caught it was released back into the wild.
