Halloween intruders got a surprise after they said “trick or treat” to an elderly couple and then barged into the home. Even though the four real-life goblins were armed and had their victims outnumbered, the man who lived in the home responded under duress. With at least two would-be robbers pointing guns at him, the resident grabbed a registered handgun he kept near his chair and fired. Although the shot only went into the ceiling, it scared the bad guys off. They dropped two of the guns—a rifle and a shotgun—that they had brought into the house and hightailed it. Police took those guns into evidence and were searching for the suspects. (The Helena World, Helena, AR, 11/3/15)
The Armed Citizen Extra
The robbery of a Chicago, Ill., corner store was thwarted when one of the customers inside the store at the time fatally shot the culprit. The thief entered the Southwest Side business and announced the robbery to an employee behind the counter. While the suspect was temporarily distracted by another store employee, the armed citizen pulled his legally concealed gun and fired. The criminal later died of his injuries. (Chicago Tribune, Chicago, IL, 11/1/15)
From the Armed Citizen® Archives
January 1974
A man wielding a rifle and a female companion with a knife burst into an Oakland, Calif., store and demanded money from owner George Hester. When Hester fired a .22-cal. derringer at the pair, the holdup man fled but was later found by police lying in a gutter with a neck wound. The woman was arrested at the store. (The Oakland Tribune, Oakland, CA)
