Viral video captured the moment a Texas man shot through the door of his Dallas apartment at two men posing as maintenance workers who were trying to break in.
Ethan Rodriguez became suspicious when he heard a knock on his door from two people he didn’t know around 6pm on Saturday. One of the suspects, 30-year-old Aaron Contreras, said he was there to check the home’s air-conditioning filters, according to a police affidavit.
Wild footage shows the suspects attempting to kick in the apartment door when the homeowner opened fire and several shots fired through the door.
Rodriguez, who fired 13 shots at the suspects, said if he didn’t think fast enough he would “probably be dead today.”
When police later arrived, the suspects fled the area and found bullet holes in the wall of the apartment across the hall.
One of the suspects, 30-year-old Aaron Contreras, said he was a maintenance worker who was there to check the air-conditioning filter
Dallas police officers responded to the Interlace Apartments, where they found 13 bullet casings, with 13 bullet holes going through the front door and two penetrating the door to the homeowner’s apartment
Wild footage shows the suspects attempting to kick in the apartment door when the homeowner opened fire and several shots fired through the door
According to the police, Contreras was arrested on Tuesday for aggravated assault, manslaughter and attempted break-in into an apartment.
It is unclear if the second suspect has been identified.
Video shows Contreras, who was armed with a pistol, knocking on the door posing as a maintenance worker.
Rodriguez asked the man, “Can I help you?”
“Er… yes, they came to check your air filters…” the suspect replied.
But Rodriguez became suspicious after the man made two statements that didn’t add up. He knew Contreras was lying because the last time he tried to replace the air filter, maintenance said they couldn’t help.
Rodriguez also noted that, contrary to what Contreras said earlier that day, no one came to check the filters.
“He lied twice … So I was still suspicious,” he said.
Rodriguez said his clothes are also a giveaway.
“He was wearing what looked like tracksuits with black shoes and I think it was a blue sweatshirt and then he had a headscarf on but he was playing the role.” “He had the whole notepad and everything,” he told the WFAA.
Contreras was arrested Tuesday on charges of aggravated assault, fatal assault and attempted burglary at an apartment
Video shows Contreras, who was armed with a pistol, knocking on the door posing as a maintenance worker
A second suspect wearing a red shirt was also spotted outside the home
The doorbell camera captured the moment the suspect changed his behavior and unleashed a violent side from beneath his facade as he violently attempted to kick in the apartment door
Viral video captured the moment a Texas man shot through the door of his Dallas apartment while men posing as maintenance workers attempted a break-in
Without opening his front door, Rodriguez finally grabbed his pistol and fired several shots through the door, hitting the wall in front.
Rodriguez was at his brother’s home at the time of the incident. Nobody was injured
Rodriguez then decided to tell Contreras that he was not at home.
“No one is home at the moment,” he can be heard saying in the video. “You’ll have to wait until another day.”
Contreras walks away and comes back a few minutes later with a masked man and a gun, police said.
The doorbell camera captured the moment the suspect changed his behavior and unleashed a violent side from beneath his facade as he violently attempted to kick in the apartment door.
Without opening his front door, Rodriguez finally grabbed his pistol and fired several shots through the door, hitting the wall in front.
The footage shows bullets flying into his neighbor’s apartment.
“I couldn’t think straight…I had to hurry and find my firearm…come back and position myself…pointed straight at the door.”
“I had to think fast … I didn’t want to let anything happen to me or my brother,” he added.
In response, Contreras fired two shots before quickly fleeing the scene along with the second suspect.
Dallas police officers responded to the Interlace Apartments, where they found 13 bullet casings, with 13 bullet holes going through the front door and two going through the door to the homeowner’s apartment.
Dallas police officers responded to the Interlace Apartments and found 13 bullet casings with 13 bullet holes on the front door
The doorbell camera captured the moment the suspect changed his behavior and the incident nearly ended fatally
Rodriguez was at his brother’s home at the time of the incident. His wife and their seven-month-old son were not at home
Rodriguez told the WFAA he felt compelled to shoot the suspects after seeing the gun in one of their hands.
“I was hoping to get them,” he told the WFAA. “That was it mostly, I just hope I caught her.”
‘[Police] told me I fired 13 shots,” he added. “I couldn’t believe it, but then again, I emptied the clip!”
Nobody was injured in the incident.
Rodriguez was at his brother’s home at the time of the incident. His wife and their seven-month-old son were not at home. Rodriguez said he plans to terminate his lease and look for an apartment elsewhere.
“Everything seems to have happened in God’s favour,” he said. “I was protecting my family and he was just an idiot trying to come to my house and get everything.”