To no surprise, this story is not on Shannon Watts’ Twitter feed.
Bill Lahti, who lives in southern Washington, kept a pair of suspected burglars at bay until the cops showed up. The best part of the story? Lahti had one of the burglars call the police for him, on their own cellphone, to report their own crime. KOMO News reports that the local sheriff’s office is applauding his efforts.
It happened earlier this when someone first broke into his family’s home last week. “I kept coming back periodically to check in. So, Monday night, I roll up and there’s their truck backed up to the front door in the yard. (The) door was about — probably — four inches open. I could see the light through there. So, I came out there, jumped out of my truck, kicked the door open and there they were,” Lahti said.
Lahti had a gun in hand and told the two men to get on their knees. Not only did he detain them until deputies arrived, he says his phone was not working, so he had one of the men call 911 on themselves.
Here’s how Lahti relayed the conversation the criminals had with dispatch (via MyNorthwest.com):
Dispatch: “911 what’s the address of your emergency?”
Burglar at gunpoint: “Myself and another person, we broke into this house … the man has us at gunpoint. We’d just like an officer to come up here.”
Dispatch: “He has you at gun point right now?”
Burglar at gunpoint: “Yes, and we would just like an officer up here to uh … just kind of talk to this gentlemen and clear up the dispute here.”
Dispatch: “So is he confronting you right now with a gun?”
Burglar at gunpoint: “Yes ma’am.”
Dispatch: “What kind of gun is it?” (I wonder why that matters?)
Burglar at gunpoint: “I’m not certain.”
Lahti explained the situation to dispatch. “These guys are shaking like a leaf and hoping I don’t shoot em,” he said. It was the second break-in at the home.”
A spokesperson for Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office says the citizens’ arrest is an example of the benefits of someone arming themselves safely, legally and with proper training.
Cowlitz County sheriff’s deputies have identified the alleged burglars as 21-year-old Jared Barker and 18-year-old Aaron Vigna.
Lahti, the hero-homeowner, as some neighbors are calling him, worries the pair could have done this before.
Score one for the Second Amendment!
DCG