A California resident fatally shot a crazed, shirtless vandal this week after the suspect forced his way into the man’s apartment.
The incident occurred around 5:45 Tuesday evening in Pleasant Hill, a suburb of the Bay Area.
Police were called to the scene just before the deadly encounter as other residents in the area reported the suspect’s erratic and destructive behavior to dispatchers.
“He was stumbling all over the place, making loud noises,” neighbor Laura Bryan told KTVU.
Bryan said the man, later identified as 46-year-old John Kreutz, also tried to break into her residence.
As law enforcement pulled up to investigate, they heard gunfire.
Kreutz had allegedly forced his way into the victim’s home. The resident responded to the intruder with his legally owned 9mm pistol.
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Kreutz was shot multiple times, including in the chest and head. When police ran up to the home where the gunfire erupted, they found Kreutz on the living room floor.
He would succumb to his wounds.
While the Contra Costa County DA’s office is now reviewing the case, all signs indicate that this was a lawful use of force by the resident.
UPDATE: A bearded, shirtless intruder shot dead by a man renting a Pleasant Hill home was a married father of 3, family tells me. The resident who opened fire will likely not face charges, per @PHillPD. 4,5,6,7:15 p.m. @KTVU pic.twitter.com/STMyN6DaYD
— Henry K. Lee (@henrykleeKTVU) August 4, 2021
“He and his witness wife were cooperative,” Pleasant Hill police Lt. David Nichols told KTVU. “They’re not looked as a suspect at this time, and there are no suspects outstanding.”
Kreutz is survived by his wife and three children. The family did not offer a comment to the media about the shooting.
Local news affiliates are reporting that this is the third intruder-involved shooting in the Bay Area since July.
A 51-year-old Santa Clara homeowner shot an alleged burglar last month, though the suspect in that encounter survived.
And, a Fairfield man shot an armed intruder with a .357 magnum. Police found the body of the suspect across the street with a loaded handgun on his person.