A British overlander says he drove nearly 300 miles through Ethiopia with a bullet lodged in his foot, only to be shot at again by the same country’s federal police just days later.
Story Snapshot
- Charles Wright says armed militants shot him in the foot while he was traveling in Ethiopia.
- He drove roughly 300 miles to find medical care with the bullet still lodged in his foot.
- Ethiopian federal police allegedly opened fire on his vehicle after he took a wrong turn near the Awash-Djibouti junction.
- Wright claims he was detained for days and robbed by police before being released.
A Bullet Wound and a Desperate Drive
Charles Wright, a British overlander who has driven across much of Africa, says armed militants shot him in the foot during an earlier attack. Rather than stop his journey, he kept driving. Wright says he traveled about 300 miles across Ethiopia with the bullet still stuck in his foot, searching for medical treatment along the way.
Wright shared his account through video and social media posts after the ordeal, describing it as a warning to other travelers. He said the injury alone would have been frightening enough. What followed, he claims, turned a bad situation into a life-threatening one involving Ethiopia’s own security forces.
Gunfire Near the Djibouti Border
Wright says he accidentally took a wrong turn near the Awash-Djibouti junction, a route that sits close to sensitive border territory. According to his account, Ethiopian federal police then opened fire on his vehicle using AK-47 rifles. He was still recovering from the earlier gunshot wound to his foot when this second shooting happened.
Wright claims the officers who fired on him did not simply let him pass through after realizing the mistake. Instead, he says he was pulled from his vehicle and taken into custody. His account describes a chaotic scene where a wrong turn on an unfamiliar road escalated into a direct confrontation with armed federal officers.
Days in Custody and Alleged Theft
Wright says his ordeal did not end once the shooting stopped. He claims Ethiopian police detained him for several days afterward and took money and belongings from him during that time. He has not detailed formal charges or an official explanation from authorities for the extended detention.
A tourist visiting Ethiopia is warning travelers to avoid the country after he was shot at by federal police for making a wrong turn.
The man, Charles Wright, says he was forced to run through the desert to survive with a bullet in his foot.
"A few days before this video, I had… pic.twitter.com/IW0EjGBFbR
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) August 3, 2026
No independent investigation or official Ethiopian government statement confirming Wright’s full account has surfaced publicly. His story rests on his own statements and video shared online, though the broader pattern he describes fits documented concerns about how security forces in the region sometimes treat detainees.
Why Ethiopia’s Travel Warnings Matter Here
British and American travel advisories already flag parts of Ethiopia as high-risk, citing armed conflict, crime, and kidnapping near border areas. The United Kingdom’s own guidance notes that foreigners are usually not targeted directly, but it also acknowledges past cases of arbitrary detention of British nationals in the country.
Ethiopia’s human rights record adds weight to why a story like Wright’s spreads quickly online. Past government reporting has documented cases of security officials mistreating people held in custody, even though such practices are barred by the country’s constitution. That history does not confirm Wright’s specific claims, but it explains why his warning to other travelers has resonated widely.
Sources:
mirror.co.uk, vidmax.com, osac.gov, gov.uk, english.news.cn
