A 74-year-old grandmother from Texas says she defended herself from an armed intruder over the weekend by firing several shots from her .38-caliber pistol.
Rebbie Roberson of Bowie County said she she utilized her handgun for the first time ever Sunday evening after coming face to face with the masked gunman inside her Texarkana-area home, the local CBS News affiliate reported.
The septuagenarian said she was preparing to watch the evening newscast when she was caught off-guard by the unwelcome guest.
“And when I started to get up, he was in here on me with a gun facing me right to my face,” she told the affiliate. “So I had to walk right out in front of him. I didn’t know if he was going to kill me or what.”
The tables quickly turned, however, when the woman managed to get her hands on a .38-caliber pistol she had placed on a nearby table.
“I reached over there and grabbed this gun,” she said. “And when I swerved around, I pointed it at him and he ran.”
The woman said she managed to fire off several shots while she chased the man from her home, handgun in tow.
“I’m not sure I didn’t hit him. I don’t know yet. I sure tried. I sure was hoping,” she said.
Bullet holes now riddle the walls of her residence as a result of the wayward shots, the station reported.
“I tried to kill him,” she said. “Anybody break in on me, I’m going to kill them. He’s going to kill me or I’m going to kill him.”
Police say the pistol-wielding grandmother wasn’t injured during the altercation. The suspect remains at large.
“It could have been worse for both individuals, both the victim and the suspect,” Bowie County Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Jeff Neal told the station.
“Every citizen, according to the Texas penal code, has the right to defend themselves and their family,” he added.
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