COEUR D’ALENE, ID – Coeur d’Alene police are investigating a downtown shooting after officers were called to the 2000 block of E. Front Avenue around 2 p.m. Police said the incident began when a man dropped off his ex-wife at her sister’s home and then allegedly fired one handgun round in her direction before leaving the area.
Investigators said the woman was not hit, and no other injuries were reported. Police later identified the suspect as 37-year-old Christopher J. Bustillos of Bonner’s Ferry. Deputies in Boundary County eventually located him and took him into custody without incident.
Police say shooting followed a drop-off at a sister’s home
According to the Coeur d’Alene Police Department, Bustillos had driven to the city to take his ex-wife to her sister’s home. The encounter apparently turned dangerous after she got out of the vehicle.
Police said Bustillos then fired a single round from a handgun in her direction. Officers have not said what led up to the gunfire or whether the two had any contact after the shot was fired. The woman escaped unharmed, and authorities said the only known shot did not strike anyone.
Search widened after blue 1997 Honda CR-V left the scene
After the shooting, Bustillos reportedly left in a blue 1997 Honda CR-V. Police alerted nearby law enforcement agencies as they worked to track the vehicle and the person they believed was responsible.
The move turned the case into a broader search beyond downtown Coeur d’Alene. Officers were trying to determine where Bustillos had gone after leaving the scene and whether he still posed a risk. That effort ended when deputies with the Boundary County Sheriff’s Office found him later and took him into custody.
Boundary County deputies arrested Bustillos without incident
Authorities said the arrest happened without incident, and Bustillos was taken into custody by Boundary County deputies. Police have not released additional details about where he was found or what led to the arrest, but they confirmed that he was detained after the regional alert went out.
He was identified as a 37-year-old man from Bonner’s Ferry. Police have not announced any charges in the information released so far, and they have not described whether Bustillos remained in custody after the arrest. The case is still being handled as an active investigation.
No injuries reported as investigators continue gathering facts
Despite the gunfire, police said the woman was not struck and no one else was hurt. That detail appears to have limited the immediate physical harm from what happened on Front Avenue, though the circumstances still prompted a police response in a busy downtown area.
Investigators have not said whether the woman and Bustillos were inside the vehicle when the shot was fired, nor have they described the weapon beyond saying a handgun round was fired. Police continue to treat the case as open and asked anyone with information to contact the Coeur d’Alene Police Department at (208) 769-2320.
Downtown case remains open as police seek witnesses
The shooting adds another active case for local officers working in and around Coeur d’Alene’s downtown corridor. Police have released only a limited account so far, but they say the initial findings point to a targeted incident involving people who knew each other.
For now, investigators are relying on follow-up work and any witness information that may help fill in the details. The department has not said whether evidence from the vehicle, the scene, or the arrest played a role in identifying Bustillos. The investigation remains active while officers continue collecting information.
