Thread: 'попал в мешок'... were surrounded? etc

Just because "попал его" is incorrect. "Попал" is always about the object being caught.
Although, you could say "я попал в него" (with some projectile, like a ball or bullet). Speaking about catching someone, we should say "я поймал его в мешок", which is a totally different verb (ловить vs попадать).

So попадать is always intransitive; I was starting to think that was maybe the key to it.
Thanks maxmixiv