Police: Homeless man accidentally shoots self at Zabar's, runs away

UPPER WEST SIDE, Manhattan (WABC) -- Police say a homeless man carrying a concealed weapon at a well-known Upper West Side store accidentally shot himself Tuesday morning, and then ran away.

According to police, 48-year-old Louis 'Leston' Anderson was inside Zabar's, at 80th and Broadway, waiting to pay for a coffee and bagel when he reached into pocket, and the gun in his waistband accidentally discharged.

He was shot in the right leg, below his knee. He ran away from the scene, sparking a police investigation.

He limped west on 80th Street and made his way to Roosevelt Hospital where police found him. He was treated for a non-life threatening injury.

New York City Police Department detectives followed the blood trail to Riverside Park, where they recovered a gun.

At the hospital, detectives said Anderson told them he found the gun on West 39th Street, near the Lincoln Tunnel. He was searching for cardboard at the time.

He offered to show detectives where he found it after he is treated, police said.

The investigation is ongoing. The man will be held on an outstanding warrant for an unrelated narcotics arrest.

He has nine prior arrests for drug use, police say.