70-Year-Old Woman Shot Home Invader, Deputies Say

Zachary Stieber
By Zachary Stieber
February 4, 2019US News
share
70-Year-Old Woman Shot Home Invader, Deputies Say
Crime scene with police tape. (Mark Makela/Getty Images)

A 70-year-old woman shot a man who tried to rob her house, sheriff’s deputies in West Virginia said.

The woman, who was not identified, resides in a house on Seneca Trail near Hillsboro.

Deputies with the Pocahontas County Sheriff’s Office were called to the home around 3:10 a.m. on Feb. 4. When they arrived, they found Jesse Blake, 34, lying in the yard, reported WVNS. Blake allegedly tried breaking two windows to get into the house but was stopped by the woman when she fired a .22 magnum rifle.

Blake was shot at least once. He was rushed to a hospital in Roanoke for treatment.

No charges have been filed as of yet and the case is still under investigation.

The 70-year-old woman has not been publicly identified.

Man Holds Burglary Suspects at Gunpoint

A video showing a North Carolina man holding burglary suspects at gunpoint outside of a house has gone viral.

The footage shows Stephen Routh using a pistol to keep the suspects in place as they cower on the back lawn while Asheboro police officers rush to the scene.

Routh said that he watches over the house, which belongs to his parents, and went over with his gun after receiving a call about some strangers being on the property.

He said that when he arrived he saw three people trying to exit the back door and he showed them his gun and told them to get on the ground.

“I had the gun and they were coming out, and as soon as they saw the big gun pointed at them, their hands went up,” Routh told WGHP.

He said that the trio ransacked the house, causing a lot of damage, but didn’t appear to take anything, leaving him confused about their motive.

“They know this is not their home. They know they had no business in here, and they mentioned they just thought they would just go in there and look around,” said Routh.

He said that the gun provided him with protection and kept the criminals from leaving, adding that people thinking about breaking into homes should keep in mind that homeowners and residents could be armed, and have the right to shoot.

“There have been too many instances lately of home invasions and these like this where they get caught,” he said. “And some people have been shot and killed, especially those home invasions. People are not taking this mess anymore.”

The Asheboro Police Department was investigating the case.

Crime Declines

The FBI said that both violent crime and property crime decreased in 2017, the last year that full statistics are available for, compared to 2016. Overall violent crime decreased 0.2 percent from 2016 to last year, while property crime decreased 3 percent during that time, the agency said in September 2018, releasing data from the previous year.

“There were more than 1.2 million violent crimes reported to UCR nationwide in 2017. There was a 0.7 percent decrease in murders and a 4 percent decrease in robberies from 2016 to 2017. Aggravated assaults increased 1 percent in 2017. The FBI began collecting data solely on an updated rape definition last year, and 135,755 rapes were reported to law enforcement in 2017,” the FBI stated.

“The report also showed there were more than 7.7 million property crimes last year. Burglaries decreased 7.6 percent and larceny-thefts decreased 2.2 percent. Motor vehicle thefts increased by 0.8 percent from 2016 to 2017.”

The figures were compiled from more than 13,000 law enforcement agencies around the United States that submitted their crime data to the FBI.

ntd newsletter icon
Sign up for NTD Daily
What you need to know, summarized in one email.
Stay informed with accurate news you can trust.
By registering for the newsletter, you agree to the Privacy Policy.
Comments