EXCLUSIVE: Frum Homeowner Holds Would-Be Burglar At Gunpoint

glock_used_in_incident_tls_wmEXCLUSIVE: [PHOTO OF ACTUAL GUN & LASER USED] A burglar attempting to break in to a Frum home was not expecting to be looking straight down the barrel of a gun and begging for his life. The frightening incident occurred at about 4:20 AM this morning when a local resident woke to what he believed was one of his children walking in the hallway.

Realizing it wasn’t, the homeowner got out of bed and started for the stairs.

When he got to the stairs, he noticed the front door handle beginning to turn and headed back to his bedroom. But not to go back to sleep.

He immediately woke his wife while he unlocked the combination to his gun safe under his bed, and told her to call police. 

“I told her to tell Police that there’s someone breaking in and that I have a gun”, the homeowner revealed EXCLUSIVELY to TLS.

The homeowner headed down the stairs to the front door and hid behind the door figuring he’d shoot the would-be burglar, should he break-in.

But while waiting behind the door, the homeowner looked into the kitchen and saw the suspect at the sliding door, attempting to make his way in from there.

“FREEZE OR I’LL SHOOT”, the homeowner yelled through the sliding door, while pointing his 45 Caliber Glock at the suspect with the gun’s barrel and laser pointing right at his face.

The suspect immediately lifted his hands and pleaded, “DON”T SHOOT, DON’T SHOOT”.

“YOU MAKE ONE MOVE AND I’LL SHOOT”, the homeowner again yelled, with his finger on the trigger.

Seconds later, a Lakewood Officer with his gun drawn ran up to the burglar and told him to freeze, while the officer held him at gunpoint waiting for backup to arrive.

Once Lakewood Police were on him, the homeowner lowered his weapon and let Police handle the rest.

“Moments later, another officer arrived and put the guy in handcuffs and took him away”, says the homeowner.

Asked if he was nervous, the homeowner tells TLS, “I was actually quite surprised, I remained collective the entire time”. “I played out this scenario in my head many times”, the homeowner says.

The homeowner says he owns several guns, but the Glock used in this incident was purchased just a couple months ago.

The suspect, described as an approximately 20 year-old white male, was arrested and taken into custody.

No charges were filed against the homeowner. TLS.

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84 COMMENTS

  1. Glad this ended peacefully. However, the following sentence doesn’t make sense.

    “The homeowner headed down the stairs to the front door and hid behind the door figuring he’d shoot the would-be burglar, should he break-in.”

    Does a homeowner actually have a right to SHOOT someone just because they entered their home?? I don’t believe so. Had that happened and the burglar was unarmed and gotten killed, the homeowner would probably be charged with 2nd degree manslaughter. Just my thought but with today’s judicial system, I believe that would happen.

  2. It is about time a person steps forward to protect his family and his property. I am sick of this whole passive attitude we are told to take.. give them your wallet, submit to then. Enough is enough, this will teach others and give them second thoughts before breaking into another home and taking property, or even g-d forbid kidnapping a child..

  3. The homeowner doesn’t have the right to shoot an intruder in this state. I don’t remember the specifics but I think the homeowner would have to be trapped with no means of escape, and in mortal fear of his life- again, could be wrong on specifics but that’s what I understood the law to be. Having a security system and hiding until police arrived would have been less risky.

    Regardless, so glad this man was able to stop the break in and that no one was hurt! Good for him!

  4. Why does a frum person need SEVERAL handguns? Isn’t one enough? (There are some who would say even one is too many.)
    What would’ve happened if the burglar was armed? A shootout? Wife and kids caught in crossfire c”v?
    A person has the right to defend himself, but not the right to shoot an unarmed intruder. The homeowner was lucky the kid was inexperienced and unarmed. I shudder to think what could’ve happened c”v if the burglar was a pro.

  5. A homeowner has the right to defend himself against an intruder if he feels threatened. In this case the homeowner was not looking to shoot an unarmed intruder, rather protect his family from a possibly armed and dangerous criminal.
    But it is important to note that guns are not for everyone. You must know how to safely and legally handle and keep a gun before you consider buying one.

  6. Quote “But while waiting behind the door, the homeowner looked into the kitchen and saw the suspect at the sliding door, attempting to make his way in from there.”

    sounds like from this statement he was not yet inside the house.
    can only be charged with attempted break in ,had the homeowner shot this person he would be in big trouble . I do agree you have thright to protect your life ,however here in NJ if you shoot someone without your life in jepody you would be charged and probably go to jail .

  7. YAYYY!!!! Good job home owner!!! Very proud of you!!
    You stood up for your family and yourself!!!

    Very-Very Proud of this homeowner.

  8. What an AWESOME story! You made my night! About time those lowlifes learn that there are consequences for actions! This man is not the only one who has a gun, there are many like him. Let the word go out!
    Btw can TLS speak to s/o in the know regarding what the law is regarding shooting the intruder?

  9. Good for him! If an intruder breaks into your home..you should definitely have the right to beat the (moderated) out of him!! He deserves whatever he gets if he’s going to go where he doesn’t belong.

  10. I love the story. a couple of more of these and they will stop breaking in. i am happy that the homeowner remembered the combo to his safe……

  11. To mamma,

    Don’t be so sympathetic to the thief. The police generally look the other way in such incidents. Anyone who comes to steal is automatically suspect of violence and should be treated as such (Torah Law). The most feared sound to a perpetrator is the ratcheting of the gun (for the semi auto) which in itself scares them away. Another not published fact is that the states that have minimal gun laws are most often the safest. This gentleman smartly locked up his weapon. Unloaded it is safer than the knives in your kitchen drawers and the electricity in the wall sockets.

  12. You cannot shoot someone for breaking into your house. However if that person is armed with any kind of weapon and is coming toward you or a family member then by all means blast away. You cannot shoot simply to protect property. Good job by the homeowner in this case, just when the cops get there lower your weapon sooner we don’t want any accidents….

  13. Great. So now we uped the anty. Now all those breaking in will do so with weapons to protect themselves. What are all the reat of us unarmed homeowners supposed to do now. Go out and buy a gun? C”V.

    So now we are in over our heads….

  14. the robber will probrably sue the homeowner for making terroristic threats when he said “dont move or i’ll shoot!”. also the homeowner will be charged with brandishing a weapon and will have to make restitution for lost wages to the burglar.

  15. What if our “frum” John Wayne wouldn’t have a 45, and had just screamed. The bugler would have run away, end of story. Same outcome. Not “awesome”, but alot safer.

  16. But while waiting behind the door, the homeowner looked into the kitchen and saw the suspect at the sliding door, attempting to make his way in from there.

    so once again my comments not posted ?????????????????????????????????????????????

  17. lock n load

    hammers up!

    its about time an intruder faces the ultimate justice.

    it was too long ago when that senior citizen unleashed his shot gun @ 3 intruders. they need some reminders. and yes houses with mezuzos do poses arms and will use em when needed. so if they push their luck yes they may get shot like any other thug that takes that risk.

    to all out there pondering over the law.
    if you are alone and you can escape without getting hurt then thats what you must do. however, wife and children are not properties they are lives, and you do have the same right to proetect them from any possible harm whether its a knife or even a screwdriver etc. if u have an intruder entering your home and he launches towards you or family and doesnt stop to your order when holding a gun at him you may blast him.
    but if he runs out you may not fire.
    likewise, if the intruder displays a gun you dont have to wait for him to shoot first.

  18. I have a feeling I know who this guy is. If that’s the guy, I know where he lives. That block is an absolute jungle. There are cops on that block dealing w/ the riff-raff on a steady basis. If I lived on that block I would also have a gun. Or 3. Great job by him & the truth is, as this recession carries on & those crooks get more & more desperate for cash, more of should get a license to carry. As R’ kahane z”l said, every jew a .22. I wanna be moisef: At every gate a .38. And one more: all the Wives w/ .45s – though not during bedtime,or the week b4 Pesach. Or when rushing for a shaitel appt,or or or …..

  19. Way too many cons than pros of having guns under your bed! G-d forbid you leave it unattended for one second with kids around while looking for scratches on your “gun collection”….. but thank G-d everyone is safe and sound!

  20. the home owner CAN NOT shoot the suspect. If the suspect threatens the home owner and the home owner does not have a way out then he may use NECESSARY force to subdue the suspect. If the suspect is un armed then shooting him is not the answer.

  21. He did a great job ! Who said he would have shot him all he did was held up the gun threatened to shoot him and he caught the guy. Great job.

  22. i live in texas and got several guns for my own protection. stories like this one happens on a daily basis here. but most of them the bugler is shot by the homeowner. and the homeowner is free of charges.

    g-d bless texas and the right to bear arms

  23. This story serves as a reminder that it’s bein hazmanim & the perpretrators are trying to cash in… While you leave on your vacation, remember to leave your house with the appearance that someone is home, i.e. Car in driveway, a light on, shades not fully closed, slightly open etc…

  24. He never shot him so enough of all the comments “if” “if” he pulled his gun scared the living daylights out of the animal and they arrested the animal so good move

  25. Great Idea! That way if I wake up in the middle of the night to a robber, I can run down to the Gemach and pick up a gun!!!

    And if you mean that I should borrow one long term , why not just buy one?

    I think someone should start a toothbrush gemach!

  26. Our development does deserve the publicity, we should be known as a scary neighborhood to rob now. Please be mefarsim (without gunmans name if you would like) the name of the development where this happened. No, I do not work for (moderated) as an agent but as a fellow resident and someone who witnessed the cops last night personally, I would like to give (name withheld) a huge shkoiach for keeping the rest of us safe as well.

  27. Officer Matlosz had a gun and was sitting in his police car when he was shot. He was a professional and he was murdered. Do you honestly think a lowlife thug who has no regard for the law or human life would think twice before he blasted a pj clad yungerman? Yes, we have a right to defend ourselves, but is it worth possibly getting ourselves killed to protect a few replaceable possessions?
    Can you imagine what you’d be saying if c”v this story hadn’t had a happy ending? “Name for tehillim?” “He should have called the police and not tried to stop him.” “He was such a nice guy. Oy,his poor wife and kids.”
    I was not defending the criminal. I was just trying to remind some of you Lone Ranger wannabes that burglars have guns too and they don’t hesitate to use them.

  28. “No charges were filed against the homeowner. TLS.”
    Am I missing something here ??
    OF COURSE the homeowner wasn’t charged?! Why would he be charged??

  29. As a gun owner and a friend of the person this happened to I can say I have over 100-150 frum friends in Lakewood that own 1 or more guns. They all keep there guns locked away in safe’s at all times and teach there kids gun safety. All I can say is I don’t know if I would be able to do what he did this morning I may have lost it and puled that trigger.

    As someone mentioned earlier it is not hard to get a gun permit and you can pick up a cheap 22cal for a couple hundred $ a safe is another $100 and for under $400 you can protect your family as he did. It’s your right to own a gun and we chose to do so.

    See you all at the range. Practice that shot you never know when you might need it.

  30. I think this story shows how stupid the criminals in our town really are. The lowlife was outside the house, hey stupid runaway!!

    The home owner cannot hide behind the door waiting for the criminal.

    To the home owner I hope you never have to shoot that gun, it is a tough thing to live with. But in saying that nice job.

  31. What about having a fake replica gun for the purpose of scaring away an intruder? It was the owner’s posture and attitude that scared the thief most of all. The thief should BELIEVE it’s a real gun, and most wouldn’t take the chance of defying a person brandishing a weapon – real or fake.

    Yes, there are dangerous armed criminals in Lakewood, but the vast majority who break into homes are simply looking for easy cash or valuables. Ask Lakewood Police, – they would rarely enter a home owner’s bedroom if they appeared to be home.

    Our home was forcefully entered once and this was certainly the case. He even left the wallet and its cards and just took the cash in it. (Plus a bottle of high-end scotch).

  32. First, the law in NJ is that you can use deadly force to defend yourself if faced with deadly force (or you reasonably believed your life was in danger). You can’t just shoot someone by virtue of them having broken into your home. If it turns out the person was unarmed you have a problem.
    Second, to all the “what iffers” — what if he was a “pro”, what if he was armed, what if there was a shootout. I ask you this — does your life and your family’s lives mean so little to you that you would put your fate in the hands of an armed intruder and depend on his mercy? Isn’t it better to have the option and the ability to defend yourself? Hasn’t anyone learned the sugya of “ha ba bamachteres”? Isn’t anyone aware that stopping a rodef is a mitzvas aaseh and you are “oyver a lav” if you fail to do so?

    WAKE UP JEWS. Despite the propaganda in the media (citing to junk science studies), owning a gun does NOT increase the risk to you or your family IF you are responsible (ie keep your gun locked in a good safe as this person did) and get a reasonable amount of training. Join the NRA, go to the local police station and apply for a firearms ID card, take a basic pistol and/or rfile or shotgun course, buy a firearm, and store it safely.

  33. 19. good thought, most intruders are highly literate seekers of truth who read blogs and think deeply about things, they are only breaking in to find the truth.

  34. To everyone who is saying it was not worth risking a shootout over a few possessions…

    If someone enters my home, I am prepared for the worst. I am not going to undersell his intentions and assume he is only after my loose change. If he enters my home, I will protect my family with any means necessary.

  35. I personally don’t need a gun, have something better 2 BIG German Shepherds, they are enough of a deterrent, and seeing them in the bay window makes people run.

  36. There is a saying that I heard a long time ago regarding the “legality” of shooting someone. “I’d rather be judged by 12, than carried by 6”.

    In other words, if the life of me or my family is in jeopardy, I am going to shoot the intruder. If it’s not necessary, that’s another thing – but the benefit of the doubt is going to be against the person that thought stealing and breaking and entering was appropriate.

    As for the comment about how many guns is necessary – I heard a politician put it this way once: “I have more than I need, but not as many as I want”. Personally, I use them for competition and self defense. Just like anything else, each is better at doing a different job. As long as you take proper precautions, there’s no more danger to children, etc… than the knives you leave on the kitchen counter.

    There is a halachic REQUIREMENT to kill the rodef — it’s not an option. Yelling might work, it might not. A fake gun might scare them away, it might get you killed.

    But training and owning a handgun in your home is a right I would never be without. May I never have to point it at a human being for all the days that I live — but if that day ever comes, I am fully prepared to be judged by 12 rather than be carried by 6!

  37. And one more thing – for a people who have been hunted down and killed in nearly every Country we’ve ever lived in, you’d think we would have a better appreciation for the right to self defense.

    Visit Jews for the Preservation of Firearm Ownership.

  38. to # 51
    HUH??? you have a gun and you dont know if you would have been able to control yourself!?? Just listen to yourself speak. I sure hope your wife makes you get rid of that and quickly!

  39. #47- don’t worry we are known as a scary neighborhood. I am not lying or exaggerating when I tell you that I fear driving through Lakewood as much as i used to fear driving the slums of Philadelphia. I am not afraid of the hoodlums, but rather the (moderated) in cars in the middle of the street shmoozing as though they owned the world, bad parkling, unsafe (moderated) making right turns with their left signal on, etc etc. We are a prime target for Crown Heights style rioting when the wrong person gets killed.

  40. Much feedback and great reviews! My compliments to #30 Clint Lakewood says and 59 Mordichai says. They are right on target with accurate information.

    Our homes are a sanctuary for our family, and when an intruder makes the decision to violate that sanctuary, they put themselves at risk. The homeowner is to be commended. He did nothing wrong, as he demonstrated his ability to deny access to his home from a criminal.

    The second amendment of the Constitution guarantees our rights to own various categories of weapons, provided that the proper licensing has taken place. The homeowner followed all the rules, and the attempted intruder followed none of them.

    G-D bless this homeowner, and as for the criminal, it is my hope that he will one day return to society as a decent citizen, after incarceration and hopefully rehabilitation.

  41. ToMordechai says:
    Well said and accurate information Thank you for your post ! when it comes to guns there is much distorted information being spewed by those who oppose owenership. The only ones who should be denied ownership are criminals & mentaly deranged individuals . Everyone else in this country has a constitional right to bear arms

  42. 59. is rightly debunking the liberal garbage. when decent people have guns crime goes down BIGTIME! the worst of all worlds and what liberals want is for the only armed people be the ones who are least responsible, the criminals themselves.

  43. I urge every Jew — strike that, every law abiding, responsibile citizen in this state — to educate yourselves regarding the travesty that is NJ gun laws. Read up on them — the arbitrary restrictions, the abuses of power and arbitrary delays involved when applying for permits, the innocent, law abiding people arrested and sometimes convicted of possessory firearms crimes in this state for unknowlingly owning a firearm that for some arbitrary reason has been prohibited under NJ law. Decide for yourself whether they make a lick of sense.

    These laws should outrage everyone — whether or not you own or are interested in owning a firearm. This is not alarmism or right wing propaganda. I don’t care if you are a liberal, moderate or conservative. You should care when the government takes away our freedoms and violates your rights, even if you choose not to exercise them.

    Also, if you own a firearm come out of “the closet”. Don’t be cowed by the prevailing irrational prejudice in the Jewish community against gun owners. Find a friend or family member who has never fired a gun and offer to take them to the range. They may not choose to buy a firearm, which is fine — it’s a very serious responsibility that not everyone wants to or can accept. But at least they will discovery that that gun owners are not the boogeymen portrayed in the media and by many Jewish organizations like the ADL.

  44. To # 72
    its refreshing to see someone willing to take a stand when our rights are violated . You are right on “target’ with you positon . little by little the rights we take for granted are being denied . Having been a gun owner since my teenage years its those who have little or no knowledge of gun ownership & responsibility that are deeply afraid of them and many times are behind the move to deny citizens the right to ownership.

  45. thx bill

    i do have a recommendation for the gov about issuing gun permits, is that besides a background check one shall have to pass a psycolog. test as well.
    as is obvious many bloggers here dont seem fit for gun handling.
    altho its a right to bare arms its a fact that not all are mentally fit for it.
    especially as those who oppose to it and fear their own Shadow we dont need them shivering in front of an intruder and begging please dont make me shoot you im not sure if i can really do this so please go away (and dont tell anyone).
    we dont need such scenarios where ppl freak out and either miss their target or simply lose it to the intruder.
    some ppl should stay away from weapons and stick to yelling and pleading.
    sorry tls gd created all ppl equally but what they do to them self is not anyone else’s fault.

  46. good point clint eastwood i mean lakewood.

    you are right we have the right to bear arms and we also have the right to be stupid.
    btw i cant remember the combo for my safe so i use a key which i keep locked in da safe as well so i would say im very safe .

  47. The gun laws written in this state are from our all knowing Democrats, they know what is best for us and how we should live our lives. Remember the criminals have rights too!

  48. r people here really suggesting that you ask a burglar if he has a gun or knife? Did he take drugs today? and is he planning to cause you physical harm before you take a gun to him ( mind you the guy is still alive) people other than thieves do brake into homes.

    that can not possibly be state law.

  49. Hey confused:

    Yes that is the spirit of the law, sad isn’t it. If the burglar, while in your bedroom is robbing you says “I am not going to hurt you” you can’t shoot him.

  50. i do agree that a person can have a gun in his home. although i hope this guy has a permit for his guns. and if u have children at home? that’s something to be careful about. cause if u do have children, u have to be absolutely positive that a child will not get a gun in his possession. otherwise, there’s big trouble.
    but it was good of this guy to protect his family like that and know what to do. but also this is mainly a job for the police who are trained to do what they do.

  51. Lakewood is becoming a scery place to live. I just got my GPS stolen from my car last week, from my drivway. Lakewood needs the FBI watching us. more detectives.

  52. no. 81, a man is in your house with a weapon ready to attack you, cops are minutes away and your gun is seconds away, what do u pick up first.? The phone or your gun? In most cases cops only arrive at the aftermath of the crime to do paperwork. By then it may be too late .

  53. He did NOT shoot the would be burglar. Why? Because he has a brain and knows the law and its implications. He is able to see what is happening and react appropriately.
    Unlike a great many people here, it seems.

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