A 93-year-old homeowner shot at least one intruder in Moreno Valley after a group of them came into his home and attacked him, he and the Riverside County Sheriff said Wednesday.
Just after midnight, Joe Teague opened fire inside his Moreno Valley home on a group of intruders after he says they began to attack him.
"The fact is, when they broke in they got a lot of my equipment and I approached them to put them under citizens arrest," he said.
Deputies from the Moreno Valley Station were called to his home in the 24300 block of Eucalyptus Avenue for a shooting call.
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"I kept telling them, I have a shotgun with three shells in it, but I actually only had one. And they kept throwing stuff at me," Teague said.
The injured intruder was in critical condition, the sheriff’s department said. The Central Homicide Unit was investigating Wednesday morning. The homicide unit was called due to the severity of the intruder's injuries.
Oscar Malma is married to Teague's granddaughter. He said that Teague recently lost his wife, and there have been multiple break-ins at his home.
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"It happened once on Friday, Friday they went to break in the house. And now this happened in the middle of the night. They were looking for him," Malma said.
He says Teague has been living with his daughter recently after his wife died a few months ago, so he isn't home as much.
He says burglars have taken notice.
"He’s an old retired plumber and he has a lot of tools. He was a musician as well, so he has a lot of musical instruments. Little by little they've been ripping him off," Malma said.
Teague was questioned for a long time by investigators.
It isn't clear if any arrests have been made.
"I don’t blame Joe. He’s been working all his life, he’s 93. He’s been working on his life and whatever little things he has, he needs to protect them," Malma said.
