San Francisco 73-year-old shoots suspected home intruder

By Da Lin

An intruder got much more than he bargained for when he targeted the San Francisco Sunset District home of a Vietnam War veteran.

A neighbor’s surveillance footage obtained by CBS News Bay Area showed the suspect had walked back and forth on 22nd Avenue, near Lincoln Way, about 40 minutes before the break-in. 

A short time after 5 a.m., the 73-year-old veteran said the suspect drilled a hole into his wooden door on the first floor to unlock it and force his way inside.

“A professional burglar cut his way into my home,” said he said as he pointed at the large hole in his door.  He withheld his name out of concerns for his safety.

Asleep on the third floor, he said he was jolted awake by strange noises from the floor below. He said he grabbed his handgun and went downstairs to investigate.

On the second floor, he came face-to-face with a man dressed in all black, wearing a hoodie and a face mask— And he wasn’t alone.

“He had a large dog, maybe a 60-pound husky, with him. And I encountered [the burglar] face to face. He kind of grabbed me, and I fell to my hands and knees, and I shot him because physically I felt really threatened. He had already made a deep intrusion into my home,” he said.

The Army vet said he suffered minor scrapes to his hands and knees during the physical confrontation with the intruder. He said he fired one shot at the suspected burglar.

“I believe I hit him somewhere here, somewhere in the buttocks,” he said.

The man ran off. Blood-stained shoe prints outside the home showed the suspect running toward Golden Gate Park, leaving his dog behind.

In a neighbor’s security video obtained by CBS News San Francisco, the abandoned dog could be heard repeatedly barking.

“He fled and the dog remained here for a while. He left the dog. I think Animal Control has the dog now,” said the San Francisco native.

A short time later, San Francisco police said they detained an injured man 3 miles away, near Geary Boulevard and 47th Avenue in the Outer Richmond.

Paramedics rushed him to San Francisco General Hospital. Police said he is currently recovering from non-life-threatening injuries.

“Our neighbor is really something special. I’m glad that he was able to do this. But it doesn’t surprise me,” said the veteran’s next door neighbor Michael, who declined to provide his last name.  “He’s definitely got a heroic side to him. He’s a real, true vet.”

San Francisco police reported overall burglaries are down 22 percent compared with the same period last year. But neighbors said Saturday morning’s break-in is a reminder that crime still happens in the Sunset.

“It’s unusual. But the Sunset is not free of crime,” said Michael.

The veteran said he’s still trying to process what happened. And is grateful he wasn’t seriously hurt.

“I had a little help from a friend, just a little friend,” said the Army vet. “But I’m just kind of really shook up still.”

San Francisco police said if they confirm the injured man at San Francisco General is the burglary suspect, they’ll take him into custody. He could face burglary and other charges.