Man Dies of Self-Inflicted Gunshot at Shooting Range Owned by Piedmont Fire Chief

A 43-year-old man was found dead Wednesday of an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head at a Vacaville shooting range, a Vacaville police spokesman said yesterday.

The range is owned by Piedmont Fire Chief Ed Tubbs, who was an assistant chief at the Dixon Fire Department before being hired as Piedmont's chief in 2010. Vacaville and Dixon are about 13 miles apart in Solano County. Tubbs also serves by contract as the fire chief for the City of Albany.

According to The Vacaville Reporter, the business was shut down while authorities investigated.

The man was found alone on the floor of the "B" range of the Center Mass Shooting Range, an indoor shooting range at 27 Commerce Pl., Vacaville, by people who were shooting in the "C" range, according to Vacaville police Sgt. Charlie Spruil.

The victim is believed to be a Sacramento resident, Spruill said. The victim's registration with the shooting range identified him as a state worker, he said.

Police received a call about the shooting at 3:35 p.m. and the victim was pronounced dead at 3:42 p.m., Spruill said.  The Solano County coroner's office was en route to the scene late Wednesday afternoon.

The Vacaville Reporter said that, according to police, the victim had completed one box of ammunition and had gotten a second box moments before his body was found by other customers. Authorities are investigating the death as a possible suicide, the Reporter said.

Bay City News Service and Dixon Patch contributed to this article.