Bad guys who think that the elderly and disabled make an easy target better think twice. An elderly man in Missouri, who relies on an oxygen tank, got the better of two ruffians who broke into his home as part of an attempt to steal the man’s prescription drugs. The armed citizen was acquainted with one of the would-be thieves, police said, but apparently the bad guy didn’t know him well enough to know that he kept a gun for defensive purposes. The two men approached the door and knocked. Since the homeowner recognized one of them, he opened the door. The suspects, one of whom had a mask over his face, bulled themselves in, pushed the resident aside and started to rifle through his belongings. The citizen grabbed his gun and shot one intruder in the abdomen. (dailyjournalonline.com, Park Hills, MO, 4/1/16)
The Armed Citizen® Extra
A military veteran in his 50s was able to turn the tables on a pair of armed would-be robbers when they barged into the Calumet City, Ill., pawn shop he was patronizing. The man was alone with three employees when the two masked suspects entered and tried to herd everyone into a back room. When one of the criminals pointed his gun at the veteran’s head, the customer grabbed at it, resulting in a scuffle for control of the firearm that lasted four minutes. During this time, the three employees and the second robber all fled the scene. The customer was eventually able to gain control of the gun and shoot the thief, who was later hospitalized and charged. Police are still looking for the second suspect. (abc7chicago.com, Chicago, IL, 1/25/16)
From the Armed Citizen® Archives
February 1978
When Marlene Jacobs noticed three suspicious-looking youths near her New Orleans, La., home, she called the police and got her shotgun. A few moments later, the three kicked open her back door and entered the residence, only to find the shotgun-wielding woman ready and waiting for them. The hoodlums then fled into the arms of police, who were just arriving on the scene. (The Times-Picayune, New Orleans, LA)
