An [unnamed] active 73-year-old retiree was well liked in his South St. Louis neighborhood. He helped people out. He spent much of his time in his garage working on his truck. The retiree had been a victim of robbery attempts before. The armed homeowner was in his garage, working on his truck, when two men entered with guns drawn. From fox2now.com:
A 73-year-old man told police that he shot the suspects after they attempted to rob him. Investigators say that the man was inside of his garage when the suspects entered the door and displayed their guns. Police say that one of the suspects held a gun to the victim’s head and demanded the victim back up.
The victim said he got out his gun and, fearing for his safety, shot at the men. Police say that the victim’s gun and the guns used by the suspects were recovered from the scene. The gun recovered from Jonathan Warren was reported stolen on Sunday by the Florissant Police Department.
The homeowner’s marksmanship didn’t let him down. The two dead robbers, Jonathan Warren, 18, and Lonnie Middlebrook, 20, had significant criminal histories. No surprise there. From stltoday comments:
Case.net shows these two were certainly not on the path to stellar citizenship. Middlebrook already had charges pending on unlawful possession of a firearm over the summer. The other guy had charges for elder abuse and property damage with intent to steal. Plus it looks like they both had several run-ins with MetroLink.
The retiree was not hit. It’s not clear who fired how many shots; the 73-year-old fired at least two. Police say it appears to be clear-cut self defense, and no charges are expected.
©2016 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included. Link to Gun Watch