Kind of scary that this kind of stuff is on the rise!! I'm starting to feel like I live back in Southern California again
http://www.wcax.com/story/18763620/resident-shoots-2-in-violent-winooski-home-invasionWINOOSKI, Vt. - "I know they don't leave their door open like that late at night," Christine Cusson.
Cusson watched as police swarmed her neighbors' home early Tuesday morning. She lives on River Street in Winooski with her young son. But a violent home invasion has her second guessing their safety.
"It's pretty hard," she said. "It's scary."
Police say at 1 a.m. Tuesday the tenants in an apartment heard a banging at the door. The male resident told police the woman standing outside was a stranger. She was looking for another man who occasionally stayed with the Winooski couple. Police say when the tenant tried to turn her away; two other men appeared in the doorway.
"One kind of pushed the door open, punched the male resident in the face, knocking him back and then tried to make their way in. And at that point the male resident who was armed with a .38 revolver fired one shot at the intruder," Winooski Police Chief Steve McQueen said.
Police say that was Trinelle Cox, 25. He was with Angel Concepcion, 24. Both men are from New York City.
Police say the tenant then shot Concepcion as he tried to kick down the door.
"It sounded like someone lit off those little firecrackers in a metal garbage can. And there was like four to six of them. It was pow-pow, pow-pow," Cusson said.
Both men are in intensive care but are expected to survive. Police say they'll likely face charges when they're released from the hospital. Detectives executed a search warrant on the property, treating a child's play yard as a crime scene. They're hoping evidence here may help solve another crime.
"I do know that one of the individuals that I've identified was also identified in the South Burlington incident," McQueen said.
Last week, someone fired a dozen shots at a car fleeing from an apartment complex in South Burlington. Police say the shooting was drug-related. Now detectives in both cases are hearing the same suspect street name pop up, leading them to look at the possibility that Concepcion was at the South Burlington shooting. It's not clear if he could have been the shooter or one of the three people in the car.
Police are still looking for the female accomplice who knocked on the door. She's described as a black woman in her 20s. Police say another black man may also be involved. If you have any information call Winooski police at 802-655-0221.
Police are not releasing the name of the resident who shot at the alleged intruders. They say until they have these drug connections figured out, they're withholding it for his own safety. He has not been arrested or charged with any crime. Ultimately it will be up the state's attorney to decide if the shooting was justified.
