A man discovered with a bullet wound at a Brantley wreck has cleared up the mystery of his injury.

Brantley resident Taylor Hancock’s single-vehicle wreck happened Jan. 2 on Club Pond Road.

“When we responded to the traffic accident he was involved in, we found out that he had been shot,” said Michael Johnson, chief investigator with the Crenshaw County Sheriff’s Office.

Hancock had been shot through the shoulder and just above his heart with a .9 mm gun. He spent several days in intensive care recovering from the bullet wound and injuries sustained in the wreck. When he was finally able to speak to an investigator, he said he had been shot by an unknown assailant.

Deputies spent several days following leads that brought them no closer to solving the incident.

The break finally came during a conversation with Hancock.

“He admitted to having an accidental discharge,” Johnson said. “He was trying to clear a jam and it was an accidental, self-inflicted wound.”

Johnson stressed the importance of gun safety.

“If you’re trying to clear a jam, don’t point it at you or anyone else,” he said.

Johnson said Hancock panicked when he was questioned about the wound and gave a false statement. No charges have been filed against Hancock for making the false