BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) — A Florida man accused of invading a house died after he was shot dead with his own gun after the resident fought back, officials said.
The Manatee County Sheriff's Office said in a statement that the suspect entered the house in Bradenton, Florida on Friday and placed a pistol to the head of the man who lived there as he was sleeping.
The man told deputies the suspect was unknown to him and he fired a round next to his head and beat him up with the weapon. He told officers he fought back and was able to reach for the gun when the suspect dropped it. He shot the intruder and ran next door to alert his neighbor, officials said.
Deputies arrived and found the gun and back door of the house open, and began conducting a search in the area. The statement says they found the man dead on the ground against a condo building near the home, and he appeared to have died from the gunshot wound. The sheriff's office identified him as 26-year-old Demetrius Downer, but did not release the name of the resident.
