(Editor’s note: due to the nature of the incident, some details – including the specific location of the incident and the name of the suspect – are being withheld.)
An 82-year-old man has been charged with discharging a firearm into an occupied structure and related offenses in connection with a Sunday morning incident in Skippack Township.
Police were dispatched to a home on Fort Bevon Road on May 19 at 6:50 a.m. after receiving a 911 call regarding a suicide attempt in progress, which included an elderly male with a long gun firing shots within the residence. Troopers with the Pennsylvania State Police arrived at the scene and created a perimeter for a barricaded gunman, according to the criminal complaint.
A family member told police they were lying in bed when they heard a gunshot, and when they went downstairs, they said they encountered the man holding a shotgun. The family member approached the man and removed the gun from his possession, at which point the man said he wanted to die due to the recent death of his wife.
Troopers used a public address system to order the man to exit the home and surrender, which he did without further incident, police said. Investigators then entered the home, at which point they located one spent shotgun shell on the floor of the living area and observed a broken side window on the first floor.
Police said the trajectory of the projectile went towards an occupied home adjacent to the man’s home. The resident of that home told police they heard a loud noise, but they did not report any damage.
A total of three long guns were removed from the home following the man’s arrest, according to charging documents.
Police said the man was transported to an area hospital under a 302 involuntary commitment, and he is currently awaiting inpatient admission to an area geriatric psychiatric facility.
As a result of the incident, the man has been charged with one felony count of discharging a firearm into an occupied structure, three misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person, and one misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct. Bail was set at $25,000 unsecured at his arraignment on Monday.
If you or someone you know is experiencing thoughts of suicide or self-harm, help is available by calling or texting the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988. Additional help can be found online here.
