Victoria, Texas

From the Victoria Advocate of June 9, 2006

Victoria man thwarts former employee's attack

A 58-year-old Victoria man was able to thwart an intruder early Friday morning by slapping him across the face with a pistol he had grabbed for protection.

Ultimately, a 36-year-old man, listed as a transient, was arrested by police on suspicion of burglary of a habitation, according to an arrest report.

Officers were called to the home in the 4600 block of Lilac Lane after the resident called 911 reporting someone had kicked in the door to his home.

It was about 3 a.m. when the man told police that he heard a loud noise and grabbed his .22-caliber pistol.

Walking toward the front door he saw the shadow of a person in the doorway, the man told officers.

When the intruder spoke, the resident recognized his voice as a former employee.

The man came at the resident, hitting him in the chest. The resident then hit the man across the face with his pistol and the attacker fled.

Only a couple of blocks away, a clerk called 911, reporting that someone had walked into a convenience store with blood on his face but had left.

The officer eventually found the man after seeing his shadow ducking behind a building in the 600 block of Mockingbird Lane.

The man would later tell police that he had gone to his former employer's home to beat him up over a personal matter.