After a Texas man refused to let them in, a pair of armed men resorted to kicking down his door. When the homeowner finally came to the door, they were scrambling to get away.
When Ethan Rodriguez heard a knock at his door just after 6 p.m., he thought it was strange since he wasn’t expecting visitors. His wife and 7-month-old son had gone out for the day, leaving him with his brother for what he thought would be a relaxing evening at his Dallas apartment. Sadly, he was mistaken.
The man, now identified as 30-year-old Aaron Contreras, explained through the door that he was sent by the complex manager to check the apartment’s air filter. Feeling suspicious, Rodriguez told him through his doorbell camera that he wasn’t home, and that the worker would have to come back another day. Seemingly satisfied, Contreras walked away. However, he wasn’t planning on leaving.
“I knew it was a lie because, last time we had tried to get our maintenance to get our air filter changed, they told me they couldn’t do anything about it,” Rodriguez told WFAA.
Moments later, Contreras returned with a masked male accomplice, and the pair took turns violently kicking Rodriguez’s door. Aware that the men were trying to get into his home, Rodriguez ran to retrieve his firearm. However, when he peered through the camera again, he saw Contreras holding a pistol.
“I positioned myself by my couch and my hallway, facing directly at the door,” Rodriguez said. “I was going to wait till he came in but, whenever I checked my ring camera, I saw he was kicking the door and he had a firearm in his hand. So, I wasn’t going to let nothing happen to either me or my brother.”
Fearing what would happen if the armed men managed to break through the door, Rodriguez took one more look at his doorbell camera and took aim at the entryway. Without warning, he fired, unloading his gun through the door.
“I did what my best intentions thought and I fired at the door, hoping I hit him and, sure enough, he left downstairs,” he said. “[Police] told me I let off 13 shots,” he continued. “I couldn’t believe it, but then again I did empty the clip!”
Dallas police confirmed that one of the suspects did return fire, but neither Rodriguez nor his brother were injured. Fortunately, Rodriguez’s neighbor across the hallway wasn’t home at the time of the shooting. While it wasn’t his intention to hit his neighbor’s house, he realized how dangerous the situation was.
“Everything happened I guess you could say in God’s favor. I protected my family, and he was just being a dummy trying to come to my house and get whatever.”
Officers managed to track down and arrest Contreras after the pair fled the complex. He was charged with aggravated assault, deadly conduct, and attempted burglary of a habitation. Investigators haven’t revealed if they know the identity of the second suspect. However, Rodriguez believes they will both face justice soon due to their incompetency.
“You’re dumb as f**k for not wearing a mask because I even got your name,” Rodriguez said about Contreras.
Understandably, Rodriguez says he plans on breaking his lease to move his family out of the apartment. While he doesn’t personally know either suspect, he feels that it isn’t safe to keep his family there. He also says that the landlord has yet to fix his door, which is so damaged that it cannot stay shut.
The scenario shows the disturbing reality that anyone could face, regardless of where they live. Just as Rodriguez has shown, the only thing that could stop the potentially deadly outcome was being armed and prepared for such a situation.
