West Toledo man pistol-whipped after intruder grabs gun during home invasion

12/4/2009

A man was taken to a hospital early Friday after a burglar took his gun away from him and pistol-whipped him with it at his West Toledo residence, authorities said.

Richard Lederman, 34, was taken to Flower Hospital, with lacerations on the left side of his head and his left ear, Toledo police said. He was released after treatment later in the morning, a hospital spokesman said.

Police responded to a report of a man bleeding from his head and running through the yards calling for help about 12:30 a.m., at which time they were flagged down by the victim in front of a house in the 6100 block of West Bancroft Street, according to the police report.

The man told officers that he took his handgun from a box in an upstairs room, ran downstairs, and confronted the intruder after a relative alerted him to the noise the intruder was making in the house.

The victim said he then pointed his gun at the intruder who had put his hands up, the police report said. The victim then pulled the trigger, but the gun did not fire, because it was not loaded, according to the police report.

A fight ensued, during which the intruder grabbed the gun and pistol-whipped the victim. The intruder then grabbed a flat-screen television and ran out with the gun, police said.

The victim's wife and infant child were in the house throughout the ordeal, police said.

The intruder was described as a man with a shaved head and black hair, in his late 20s, about 6 feet, 3 inches tall, and weighing about 190 pounds. He was wearing blue jeans and a black hooded sweatshirt.

There were no reports of arrests in the burglary as of about 9 a.m. Friday.