EASTPOINTE, Mich. – A robber in Michigan picked the wrong target.
Eastpointe police said a 91-year-old man shot a would-be robber in the parking lot of a Rite Aid pharmacy Monday morning.
According to WJBK, the 91-year-old had pulled into the pharmacy’s parking lot around 10:15 a.m. Monday and said he began to feel uneasy when the man – later identified as Richard Ashford – walked up to him, acting erratically.
The 91-year-old warned Ashford that he had a concealed pistol license, and Ashford walked away.
When the man got out of his car to enter the pharmacy, however, Ashford confronted him again, pulling out an “unknown object” and pointing it at him, police said. The 91-year-old drew his gun and fired, hitting Ashford in the neck.
Ashford fled the scene despite his wound, but police later captured him and took him to a local hospital for treatment.
Authorities charged Ashford with felonious assault.
“This elderly man’s self-defense is an entirely appropriate use of force,” Prosecutor Eric Smith said. “Facing imminent assault, he announced that he was armed, made attempts to withdraw, warned again that he held a weapon, and fired only when completely necessary.”
