PENN HILLS — Police were searching for a hitchhiker who shot a driver who picked him up in a Pittsburgh suburb after a struggle over a gun with a backseat passenger.

Penn Hills police say the driver, 18-year-old Curtis Bell Jr., was taken to UPMC Presbyterian hospital in Pittsburgh, but his injuries were not believed to be life threatening.

Police say Bell pulled over about 8 p.m. Sunday to give the suspect a ride after thinking he knew the man from a distance. When he got nearer, Bell realized he didn’t know the man, but gave him a ride anyway.

Police say the hitchhiker pulled a gun, apparently planning to rob the driver or steal his car, but a juvenile passenger in the backseat struggled to possess the weapon before it fired, hitting Bell.