A student who caught would-be burglars trying to break into his roommate's car opened fire on the men as they fled the scene.

According to Provo Police, a student living at the Old Academy Condos, 47 E. 600 North, was awakened early Wednesday morning to the sound of his car alarm.

The vehicle owner and his roommate, quickly arose, grabbed pistols, and went to the underground parking to check on the vehicle, said Capt. Cliff Argyle of the Provo Police Criminal Investigations Division.

The roommates, whose names have not been released, found two adult males, both with dark hair, dark complexion and possibly Hispanic, in the parking garage near the owner's vehicle.

The roommates told the burglars to get on the ground, Argyle said. But instead, the burglars ran to their car in an attempt to flea.

As the men started to leave, the roommate of the car owner said he thought they were going to hit his roommate with their car, and as a reaction, fired his gun. The bullet struck the front driver side wheel but the tire did not deflate, Argyle said.

Curt Martin, a senior at BYU, lives in the Old Academy Condos, where the incident occurred.

"My roommate heard a crazy loud noise and some screaming," Martin said.

His roommate could not go to sleep for two hours because he was shaken up by the noise, Martin said.

Often times, people throw things from the fourth floor to the parking garage, which makes a loud noise, so when the gun went off, he really didn't think anything of it, Martin said.

He stopped parking in the parking garage because of the frequency of car burglaries.

"It happens way too often," Martin said.

Currently there are no charges being considered for either of the roommates.

"The Provo Police would encourage citizens not to confront suspects in the commission of a crime," Argyle said. "Notify the police department. Be a good witness. Let the police officers make contact with the suspects."

Copyright Brigham Young University 27 Jun 2007