Burglar stabbed by resident, police say
SELF-DEFENSE: Occupant's action seems justified, police say.
By
JAMES HALPIN
Published: October 7th, 2009 03:16 PM
Last Modified: October 7th, 2009 10:22 PM
A prowler who apparently tried to slip into an East Anchorage apartment early Wednesday morning was hospitalized after its occupant stabbed him in the stomach, according to Anchorage police.
Police say the man who lived in the home, Foster Shaw, 66, was in his bedroom when he heard a thump on his porch about 1:20 a.m. He thought it might have been a moose and picked up a large knife as he went to check things out, according to police spokesman Lt. Dave Parker.
The apartment building in the 8800 block of Centennial Circle is out of the way at the north end of Muldoon in Centennial Village, a community for seniors. From its rear, where the balconies are, the building is obscured by trees on a steep, wooded slope.
Shaw looked outside to find his screen door had been opened. He saw a stranger on his first-floor balcony as he looked through the sliding glass door, police said.
When Shaw went to call police the would-be burglar came after him and grabbed his arm, according to police.
"It's not a wise idea to come at anyone else in the dark, particularly if you don't know if they're armed," Parker said.
Shaw stabbed the intruder and called police right away, he said. Police found Archie Wilson, 25, still on the porch with stab wounds to his abdomen. He could offer officers no explanation for why he was on the balcony.
Wilson, who remained hospitalized Wednesday afternoon and had not yet been charged with a crime, suffered non-life-threatening injuries. Police typically don't charge injured offenders until they are released from the hospital, so the city won't be responsible for the medical bill.
He could be facing a charge of attempted burglary when he is released, police said.
Police said the stabbing appears to be a justified case of self-defense.
The investigation is continuing.