Crime Victim Reportedly Says No to Interview with Gunfire

An 88-year-old victim in a home invasion reportedly shot at television news reporters seeking to interview him Monday.

A crew from WXYZ, Channel 7, knocked at the man’s door in an east side neighborhood several times and the reporter, Jonathan Carlson, identified himself multiple times, but when the man came to the door, he was brandishing a handgun, the Detroit Free Press reports.

The news crew, which included a photographer, backed away, but the resident of the home in the 3300 block of Ardnt Street fired from about 10 feet away. No one was injured, but the crew took cover behind a tree, Carlson reported for WXYZ.

The elderly man living at the house, who reportedly has poor vision because of medical problems, had been robbed at gunpoint on July 9 after a woman claiming to need directions knocked at his door.

When he opened the door, two men overtook him, knocked him to the ground, tied him up with a phone cord, held a gun to his head, and took his cell phone and a wallet, which contained about $60 cash. He was able to free himself, but the suspects remain at large.

In Monday’s encounter with the WXYZ crew, he surrendered after a brief standoff with police. He was taken to a crisis center for evaluation. It's unclear if he will face charges.

Detroit police spokesman Adam Madera told the Free Press the elderly man “was really timid about anybody coming to the door.”