Guns and Gear

Gun-Toting Grandpa Defends Wife, Granddaughter From Rapists In NC Home Invasion

Christian Datoc Senior White House Correspondent
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A North Carolina man exchanged fire with three home invaders after they tried to rob his house and rape his granddaughter, reports the Fayetteville Observer.

At his Lumberton home on Monday, Kenneth Byrd, 67, was approached by an individual claiming to have car problems. When Byrd invited the man into his home, he was rushed by two additional assailants wearing black clothes and ski masks.

The home invaders — all three brandishing handguns — corralled Byrd, his wife Judy and their 19-year-old granddaughter and demanded money and other valuables from the family safe.

Byrd initially complied with their demands, but when the men began to beat Judy and attempted to rape his granddaughter, he grabbed a hidden firearm and let loose a flurry of shots at the assailants.

After a brief firefight, Byrd drove the men from his home but not before receiving several gunshot wounds.

Major Anthony Thompson of the Robeson County Sheriff’s Office identified two assailants as Brandon Carver Stephens, 28, and Jamar Hawkins, 17. Authorities at McLeod Medical Center in Dillon, S.C. alerted the Sheriff’s office after the two sought treatment for multiple gunshot wounds.

Authorities found Jamie Faison, 20, — the third assailant — dead in Byrd’s stolen Cadillac, some six miles from the Byrd residence.

The three are also linked to several other home invasions in the area.

Byrd was airlifted to a nearby hospital and is currently in stable condition, according to The Robesonian.