Semmes Business Owner Shot Five Times After Police Enter Property, 911 Calls Reveal Conflicting Story

Semmes, AL (BuzzReport) — Disturbing new details are emerging after a late-night police encounter inside a Semmes business left the owner critically wounded and pleading for help for nearly an hour.

Newly released 911 transcripts reveal the frantic calls made by Johnny Bowman Jr., owner of Bowman’s Auto Air, after he was shot five times during a confrontation with Semmes police inside his own business on January 4.

Police were responding to a reported burglary at the property shortly before 3 a.m. What followed was a chaotic exchange of gunfire — and two sharply different versions of how it began.

“I’ve Been Shot… I’m Bleeding Bad”

At 3:06 a.m., Bowman made his first call to 911. According to transcripts, his voice was urgent and panicked.

“I’ve been shot,” he told the operator. “I’m bleeding bad.”

When asked who shot him, Bowman said he didn’t know.

“They were in the building. I saw flashlights and… the shooting started.”

Eight minutes later, another call came in from inside the business. The unidentified caller pleaded with dispatchers: “I need an ambulance here, immediately. I have someone here who has been shot.”

That caller phoned again minutes later, asking when help would arrive.

By 3:30 a.m., Bowman called again. His speech was slurred, his condition deteriorating.

“The police are here. I’ve been shot. I’m bleeding everywhere,” he said. “Somebody—gotta get me to a hospital.”

Despite multiple emergency calls, Bowman remained inside the building for nearly an hour.

“They Shot First — In My Bed”

At 4:04 a.m., Bowman made what would be his third recorded call to 911. Still inside the business and bleeding, his frustration and fear were unmistakable.

“Look, I just got this phone to work,” he said. “I’m at 7461 in Semmes. And these blanks are accusing me of shooting them. I didn’t shoot anybody. They shot first! … I’m bleeding out. I’m just trying to get help, man. They shot first!”

When the dispatcher asked directly who shot him, Bowman replied:

“The police. In my bed.”

Bowman told the operator officers entered his building without identifying themselves.

“All I saw was lights,” he said. “I turned the light on in my trailer and they start shooting!”

He insisted repeatedly that he posed no threat.

“I have no harmful intent to these police officers whatsoever! None!”

Unable to move without risking further blood loss, Bowman waited until Mobile County Sheriff’s deputies finally removed him from the building roughly an hour later.

Police Chief Offers Different Version

Semmes Police Chief Todd Freind described a very different sequence of events earlier this week.

According to Freind, officers announced themselves after entering the property, searched the building, and noticed movement inside a camper located on the premises.

“They started announcing to whoever was inside the trailer to come out,” Freind said. “That’s when Mr. Bowman opened the door and opened fire.”

Freind confirmed that two Semmes officers were involved in the shooting. One officer was grazed by a bullet. Neither officer has been placed on administrative leave.

Investigation Ongoing

No charges have been filed against Bowman or the officers involved. The Mobile County Sheriff’s Office is continuing its investigation into the incident.

As that investigation unfolds, the 911 recordings raise troubling questions about how the encounter escalated — and why a wounded man repeatedly begging for help remained trapped inside his own business for nearly an hour after being shot.

The full truth, it appears, lies somewhere between flashing lights, unanswered pleas, and a gunfight that left a business owner fighting to survive.