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An investigation that began when a delivery driver was wounded during an armed robbery attempt took a turn Friday when Demopolis Public Safety Director Tommie Reese reported the victim was arrested for fabricating the story.

Reese said an investigation by the DPD Criminal Investigations Division led to the arrest of the delivery driver, allegedly shooting himself and fabricating the story he gave to police.

Robert Shane Bledsoe, 42, of Opelika had told police that, while making a deliver to Captain D’s restaurant, a black male with a handgun met him at the back of his truck and demanded money. During the exchange, the driver said the assailant shot him in the arm and then fled the scene.

Bledsoe was arrested Friday and was charged with making a false report to law enforcement, rendering a false alarm, and tampering with physical evidence.

“I am very proud of our investigators for making this arrest and bringing this case to an end. It is bad enough when we have real crimes to investigate, but when someone will fabricate and create a panic in the community causing our resources to be diverted from doing other investigations, that’s a different story all together,” Reese said.