An early morning home invasion in West Melbourne, Florida didn’t turn out the way the suspects were hoping. In fact, their unwanted incursion into an armed citizen’s apartment ended with multiple suspects shot, while those who had every right to be in the apartment emerged unscathed.

The incident unfolded early Sunday morning at the Reserves of Melbourne apartment complex. Police were called out just before 3 a.m. on a report of shots fired in an apartment in the complex. When they arrived on scene they quickly learned that those shots had been fired in self-defense.

Officers learned that multiple, possibly armed, subjects had forcefully entered an apartment.

According to police, one suspect had a gun.

The apartment’s resident, armed with their own firearm, shot multiple times and struck two of the subjects.

One was transported to Holmes Regional Medical Center, where they were pronounced dead. The second person who was shot also went to the hospital, where they are currently being treated.

Many in the neighborhood were caught off guard.

“Oh my God. Sick, wow,” said Sarah Goodman, who has a relative in the apartment complex.

“I noticed six police cars and the yellow tape way out there,” Miles Svikhart, a resident, said.

“Yes, it’s very scary,” a resident said.

There are conflicting reports about the number of suspects who were shot. Orlando’s WESH-TV is reporting that the apartment dweller shot and killed one of the intruders while injuring another, but Florida Today reports that a total of three home invaders were on the receiving end of the armed citizen’s defensive fire.

The latest incident unfolded after several people, possibly armed with at least one firearm, forcefully broke into an apartment, police said. The homeowner, who had a gun of unknown caliber, fired on the group, striking at least three of those carrying out the home invasion, police reported. Police arrived minutes later along with paramedics.

One unidentified suspect was taken to Holmes Regional Medical Center where a doctor later pronounced him dead. Another suspect turned up on his own at the hospital and was treated for his wounds, police said. No details were released about the third person who was shot.

While neighbors and nearby residents may have been surprised by the shooting, they also sounded thankful that the resident was able to protect themselves. Sarah Goodman told WESH-TV that she’s a “proud Second Amendment person” herself, and would “protect her space” if she ever found herself in a similar situation. Miles Svikhart expressed support for the armed citizen as well, telling the WESH-TV reporter that the homeowner had to respond to the threat the home invaders posed to the people inside. “It’s self-defense. That’s why you have a gun,” Svikhart said. “If he didn’t have that gun, I’m sure he’d be in a lot more trouble.”

Given that authorities have already determined at least one of the home invaders had a gun of their own, I’d say Svikhart is right. At the very least those inside the apartment would have had to hope for mercy from their armed assailants, and there’s no guarantee that the intruders would have spared their lives after taking their stuff.

Police are continuing to investigate a possible motive for the home invasion, and haven’t said whether the suspects knew anyone inside the apartment at the time of the attack. There are still some unanswered questions regarding the circumstances of the shooting, but based on the preliminary evidence and eyewitness statements it sounds like the armed citizen was well within his rights to use deadly force in defense of himself and others.