Brick Wielding Burglary Suspect Shot

A man attempted to enter a home off Harbins Road in unincorporated Norcross this morning around 9 a.m., resulting in a Gwinnett County Police Officer firing one shot at him.  Police said the resulting injury was not life threatening and that the man has already been through surgery.

Cpl. Jake Smith of the Gwinnett County Police Department said officers responded to a call a few streets down from shooting incident around 8 a.m. In that case, a white male allegedly broke into a home using a stick as a weapon. “We looked for him but couldn’t find him,” said Smith (see video by clicking above image).

He believes the man may have hid in the nearby woods, waiting for police cars to clear out before making a second attempt at a different home.  

About an hour later, Smith said police responded to a call about another home invasion at 5566 Weatherford Road, this time a person was reportedly using a brick to enter the home through a door.

During the ensuing confrontation, an officer fired one shot that hit the suspect.

Neighbors in the condominium complex Clover Rise, directly across Harbins Road, said they know of several home invasions in the area recently.

Sgt. T. Akers is a juvenile corrections officer who has lived in the Clover Rise complex for six years. She said that she knows of two recent home break-ins and feels less safe since there is a wooded area behind her home and across the street from Weatherford Road.

Neighbor John Pender has lived in the area for 10 to 12 years. He said burglars have “hit this neighborhood extensively."

“I know because they’ve tried to sell stuff back,” he said. Neither neighbor heard the gun shot.