Tip leads to arrest of Texarkana man accused of assaulting girlfriend at gunpoint in August shooting

A Texarkana man police say first came to them as a shooting victim is now in jail, accused of attacking his girlfriend with a handgun in an August incident that ended with him being shot during a struggle over the weapon.

Marquaves Smith, 31, was arrested by Texarkana, Texas, police officers as he walked out of a local Walmart after someone recognized him and called police, according to a statement from the Texarkana, Texas, Police Department. The caller knew Smith had several outstanding felony warrants, police said.

Smith was wanted for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, deadly conduct, two counts of endangering a child and unlawful restraint. He also had an outstanding probation violation warrant from Arkansas, according to police.

The warrants stem from an incident in August. Police said Smith went to a local hospital early that morning with a gunshot wound to his hip and told officers he had been shot while walking down the street. He was uncooperative and evasive with officers, police said, but based on what investigators knew at the time, it was reasonable to believe he was the victim of a shooting.

That picture changed a short time later when Smith’s girlfriend went to a different emergency room, according to police. By then, Smith had already been released from the hospital, and officers were unable to arrest him that day.

Detectives say Smith became angry with his girlfriend in the middle of the night, struck her in the head with a handgun and forced her into a bathroom at gunpoint. Police said he fired a shot that narrowly missed her head and repeatedly threatened to kill her.

According to police, the woman eventually tried to run out the front door, but Smith caught her before she could unlock it. She told investigators she then saw that he had set the gun down, and she grabbed it. She said she fired several shots into the floor to empty the gun before he could hurt her, while Smith tried to take the weapon back. One of the rounds struck Smith in the hip, police said.

Two young children were inside the home during the incident. Police said physical evidence recovered from the home supported the girlfriend’s account.

In its statement, the department thanked the person who recognized Smith and called, saying the tip helped put a wanted suspect in custody.

Charges are accusations, and Smith is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.