An Indianapolis female mugging victim fought back against her alleged attackers by shooting one of the men, causing the other two to flee on foot.
Around 1:00 a.m. on Friday, the robbery victim, Crystal, returned home from work and was approached by three men.
“I just heard them saying ‘Shut up, be quiet, don’t say anything’ and the one here had a weapon,” Crystal told WTHR.
Crystal defended herself with the gun her father had urged her to carry as protection.
She reached for her weapon in the front seat of her SUV and shot one of the robbers.
“I always come home late at night, but since I went to the grocery store last night, it was even later,” Crystal said. “He is the one that grabbed at me and when he did, I just reached and turned around and shot and they ran.”
The bullet struck one of the attackers, 18-year-old Deon Smith, in the shoulder. He was arrested by Metro police.
The other two suspects are believed to have escaped through a hole in a fence. They are still at large and being sought by police.
Crystal is happy she took her father’s advice to become licensed to carry a gun.
“Honestly, I mostly carry it because my dad wanted me to,” Crystal said. “Now I’m glad I listened.”
“I never thought anything like this in my life would happen,” Crystal added.
A General Social Survey performed in 2014 found that 12 percent of women in the United States personally own a gun, reports The Guardian.
“Learn how to protect yourself if you don’t know how,” Crystal said. “Be more aware. I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings at all.”
Items were found in the suspects’ SUV that match a robbery committed earlier in the evening, where a woman was hit on the head with the handle of a gun and robbed.
Sources: The Guardian, WTHR, AmericaNews / Photo Source: Ken/Flickr
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