Elderly Australian Man Fights Off 2 Home Intruders

An elderly Australian man fought off two men who broke into his house and demanded he give them money.
Elderly Australian Man Fights Off 2 Home Intruders
11/11/2012
Updated:
11/13/2012

An elderly Australian man fought off two men who broke into his house and demanded he give them money, it was reported Sunday.

The 84-year-old man, Ernie Whitfield, fended off the men in the coastal city of Port Macquarie, with a metal pole and stabbed one of them before they fled, reported the The Australian Associated Press.

The intruders, one of whom was 6 foot 7, broke into Whitfield’s home and came upon him in his bedroom. They demanded he give them money. Whitfield said he pointed out the location of his wallet.

One of the men hit him on the arms with the metal pole as he tried to get out of bed. Police said Whitfield confronted one of the men, broke off the blade of the knife he had, and stabbed the intruder in the stomach, according to AAP.

The men were able to leave Whitfield’s house with his wallet but he pursued them and chased them off.

Neighbor Judy Hodge told AAP: “If they are going to come near people and do nasty things, they have to be prepared to suffer.”

An unnamed neighbor told the Sydney Morning Herald that Whitfield is “quite fit and it could be said that he’s quite brave. He’s quite outstanding. A man of energy and vigor.”

Whitfield was later taken to Port Macquarie Hospital and was treated for cuts on his leg and head, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

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