NH Woman, 65, Shoots Man Who Tried To Rob Her
MANCHESTER, N.H. (CBS) -- Police say a 65-year-old woman shot a man who tried to rob her Monday night, leading to that man's arrest.
Michael Bontaites, 23 of Manchester, was charged with attempted robbery and held on $5,000 bail. He was charged and arraigned Tuesday at Elliot Hospital, where he had gone for treatment after he was shot.
The incident began after the woman noticed an unknown dark-colored sedan following her as she was driving home from her job around 11:30 p.m. Monday night, which she said gave her "heightened concern."
"Your instincts will tell you. Your gut will tell you when something isn't right," the woman, who did not wish to be identified, told WBZ-TV.
The Manchester grandmother said the sedan followed her into the parking lot of her apartment complex on South Porter Street and parked near her. When she left the car to walk into her building, she said a man in a dark hooded sweatshirt got out of the sedan, ran to block her path, and reached out to grab her.
The woman, who holds a valid concealed carry gun permit, pulled a handgun from her pocket and shot the man once in the chest at close range.
"I'm not happy about it," the woman said. "Hope I never have to do it again, you know. But if I was in a situation like that I would imagine I would do it again."
The man fell to the ground, and she ran into the building to call 911.
"I mean, he went, 'Ow!' and he fell right to the ground immediately," she said.
A female occupant of the sedan got out, picked Bontaites up off the ground, and put him in the sedan.
As officers were responding to the woman's 911 call, another Manchester Police Officer identified Bontaites as he entered the emergency room at Elliot Hospital, where he was treated for a gunshot wound to the chest.
Detectives are currently trying to determine whether the other occupants of the sedan will face charges. Bontaites is expected to appear in court January 14.
The woman tells WBZ she has had her permit to carry for 10 years.
"No one has the right to do that to anybody," she said of the would-be robber. "And if you can defend yourself, all the power to you."
