65 Year-Old NYC Man Charged After Fatally Shooting Wannabe Mugger

A 65 year-old man has been hit with criminal charges in New York City after he fatally shot a younger man who tried to mug him.

Man Opens Fire On Mugger

ABC 7 reported that at around 2 a.m. last Wednesday, a 32-year-old man armed with a sharp object tried to rob a 65 year-old man who has since been identified as Charles Foehner in his driveway in Kew Gardens, Queens. The wannabe mugger was reportedly after both money and cigarettes, according to police.

Unfortunately for the younger man, however, Foehner whipped out a sliver handgun and opened fire on his attacker, shooting him five times. The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene, and Foehner immediately surrendered himself to police.

Foehner has since been charged with second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and criminal possession of a firearm. He has been hit with these charges despite the fact that the 32 year-old mugger had a lengthy rap sheet with charges that include robbery, burglary, drug possession, and other related charges.

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Neighbors Stand By Foehner

The community has already started rallying behind Foehner, saying that he should not be charged for defending himself.

“He was protecting himself. So how can I blame him?” said neighbor Vercelle Evans. “You know, unfortunately, the guy had to lose his life. I don’t wish that on anybody. But this is the circumstances when you randomly just rob people. You never know what you’re going to get.”

“If video shows that, you know, he was acting in in self-defense and the guy was actually trying to harm him, then I you know, I believe we should be able to protect ourselves,” added Angel Rodriguez, who lives down the hall from Foehner.

Rodriguez also had nothing but kind words when asked about Foehner.

“Very friendly, respectful. I’ve never seen anything from him that would indicate malice,” Rodriguez said. “So, my interactions with him have always been pleasant. Nice guy. Family guy.”

Before the charges were announced, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz admitted that the case was complicated.

“This is a complicated case and we’re going to review the evidence,” she said. “We just went to the crime scene. I will have comments for you after we investigate it.”

Related: Nun Uses Her Wits And Prayers To Thwart Robbery – ‘This Is God’s Property’

Foehner Defends Himself

Foehner, who is a retired doorman, has defended the actions that he took in the face of this robbery.

“I pulled the gun out of my pocket,” he said. “It didn’t go off accidentally. I pulled the trigger. I emptied the revolver. Last night I was carrying a firearm because of the crime in the city…I’ve had it since the 1990s. I obtained it in a bar one night. The firearms are mine and mine alone.”

Crime has been on the rise in New York City, which is run by increasingly radical liberals. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) recently described New York as “a city that has lost its way … here in Manhattan, the scales of justice are weighed down by politics. For the district attorney justice isn’t blind, it’s about looking for opportunities to advance a political agenda: a radical political agenda,” according to NPR.

Find out more about this in the video below.

The charges that have been filed against Foehner are only more evidence that woke lawmakers are more interested in protecting criminals than they are in keeping American citizens safe. Foehner’s next court appearance is scheduled to take place today, and it remains to be seen how that will turn out for him.