Scottsdale, AZ — The Corona Virus has people on edge, but homeowners in Scottsdale weren’t imagining the man who attempted a string of break-ins on Wednesday, May 13th. Police responded to calls early in the evening near Alma School and Happy Valley Road. When they arrived, a homeowner told the police that he’d seen a man trying to break into his house but had run him off.
Just hours later, another call came in from the same neighborhood. This time, the intruder had made it into the house but had met an armed homeowner.
According to the police report, a homeowner near Pima Road and Pinnacle Peak Dr. called at 10:53 pm. He said that he had shot a man he found in his home. When they arrived at the scene, they found a dead man matching the description of the home invader from earlier in the night.
The 41-year-old husband and father told them that he’d been working on his property when he heard his dog begin to bark aggressively. The barking alerted him to something happening inside his home.
He made his way inside, unsure what he would find. He immediately noticed an open sliding door and his dog barking –hackles raised– down the hallway. The homeowner immediately grabbed his shotgun.
The homeowner looked into his child’s bedroom to see a naked man standing near his child’s bed and holding something large and dark. The intruder saw the homeowner and charged at him. Defending himself and his family, the homeowner shot two times.
The suspect fell where he was hit.
Homeowner Tells His Story
After Wednesday’s shooting, the homeowner was willing to go on record and be interviewed. His name is Aaron LaTowsky, and he says that he was doing his job: protecting his family.
“So I came inside, and I saw one of our side doors was open and she was barking down the hall towards my kids’ bedrooms,” said Aaron.
The rest of the family was asleep at the time. Right away, LaTowsky says he grabbed his shotgun.
“We never would have known,” said Aaron’s wife, Brenda LaTowsky. “We would have continued to sleep and sleep through it. so I’m just so thankful.”
LaTowsky went into his daughter’s room, where he says the suspect came out with a large piece of wood, his face masked and his body naked.
“He basically was lunging at me, so it was very quick,” said Aaron. “He had his hands in the air. I could see something dark or black coming at me, and again it was very, very close, so I fired almost immediately.”
He shot two times, and both bullets hit the intruder. Police reported the naked man to be an 18-to-19-year-old.
Aaron LaTowsky says that his family lives in a good neighborhood, but that he had prepared for the unthinkable.
“God Bless America and the Second Amendment,” said Aaron. “Glad I was able to protect my family. God bless the police for coming so quick to take care of us.”
Always Ready Is Better Than Always Regretting
Aaron LaTowsky is a doctor in a very nice neighborhood. No doubt he had a home security system, and trusted police to be there in moments.
But when seconds were what counted, a shotgun saved the day. If he’d been unarmed, he could have been knocked unconscious by that piece of wood and then the intruder had the entire family at his mercy.
Carry and train for situations like this in your house because you never know when some lunatic will try this in your neighborhood.