Montana authorities say hitchhiker shot himself

Montana authorities say hitchhiker shot himself

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Authorities say a West Virginia man who claimed to be a victim of a drive-by shooting along a rural Montana highway has confessed to shooting himself.

The Valley County sheriff says 39-year-old Ray Dolin of Julian, W. Va., made the acknowledgment Thursday night.

The case remains under investigation and charges are possible but have not been filed.

Dolin claimed he was hitchhiking along U.S. Highway 2 west of Glasgow when the driver of a maroon pickup pulled over and shot him in the arm.

Authorities later arrested a 52-year-old man and charged him felony assault. The charge against Lloyd Christopher Danielson III was dropped Thursday.

Dolin said in an earlier interview he was travelling across the state working on a memoir called “Kindness in America.”