A Vancouver man accused of pointing a loaded shotgun at a neighbor whose moving truck blocked traffic at their apartment complex appeared Friday in Clark County Superior Court.
Christoffer Sepelak, 37, faces an allegation of first-degree assault stemming from the Thursday morning confrontation at the Copperstone VanMall Apartments.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Sepelak got into an argument with Jason Worster, Steven Wold and others who were in the process of moving out and had blocked the parking lot at 4701 N.E. 72nd Ave.
Sepelak said he confronted the group, at which point they stated they would move the truck momentarily. Sepelak then went to his apartment, retrieved a loaded, pump-action shotgun and walked back to the parking lot to again confront the group, the affidavit said.
He pointed the shotgun at Worster and told the group that this was how the situation was going to be handled, court records state. Worster, Wold and several others wrestled the shotgun away from Sepelak and called police.
Sepelak told police that he felt the other tenants were going to hurt him after he confronted them about moving their truck. He said they yelled expletives at him and began following him aggressively, so he retrieved the shotgun from his apartment. Sepelak said that the movers assaulted him and took his shotgun, according to court documents.
He admitted that he believed his post-traumatic stress disorder, from being an Iraq War veteran, affected his choices and that he should have called the police if he felt threatened, the affidavit said.
During his hearing, Judge Scott Collier appointed Sepelak an attorney and set his bail at $20,000.
He will be arraigned Sept. 2.
