Female burglar pays ultimate price after breaking into Philadelphia home whose owner was licensed to carry

By CLAUDIA AORAHA, DEPUTY HEAD OF NEWS Published: 16:22, 4 May 2026 | Updated: 16:22, 4 May 2026 A female would-be burglar was shot and killed by a homeowner after he spotted her climbing through the back window of his home in northern Philadelphia on Sunday. The woman entered the home and was told by the residents inside to leave - but she did not comply, according to Philadelphia Police Inspector D.F. Pace. The unnamed man, who lives at the residence and is licensed to carry, shot at the intruder multiple times following the break-in, which happened around 1pm. When she was no longer a threat to his property, the man called the police and then assisted the woman and helped officers by carrying her into the police car. The suspect was taken to Temple University Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 1:49pm. No arrests have been made.  Inspector Pace said: 'It appears that this is a case of a person defending oneself inside their own home. 'The persons inside heard the glass break, went to see what was going on and saw a person attempting to come in through the back window.  'Those residents of that house told that person to get back, get out, but that person continued to come into the home based on the information that we have so far. Pictured: North Cleveland Street, where the homeowner fired multiple bullets at a female intruder who he spotted climbing through his back window on Sunday afternoon. The woman was pronounced dead in hospital One woman living nearby, identified as Shawnee (pictured), said that her neighbor who fired the shots 'was just protecting his house.' She called the man who shot the burglar 'a good neighbor'  'The homeowners, the person who shot at the person breaking in, actually attempted to assist that individual after that person was shot and was no longer a threat, assisting officers by helping carry that person into the car, into a waiting police car.'  Neighbors in the area have expressed their shock at the broad daylight break-in - but said that there has been an uptick in antisocial behavior in the area in recent months. Two homes next to the one that was being burgled have been vacant for months and squatters have shown up, according to a neighbor living on North Cleveland Street. One woman living nearby, identified as Shawnee C., told 6ABC that her neighbor who fired the shots 'was just protecting his house.' She revealed to the outlet that she heard the 'pop pop pop' of the gun just moments after she had arrived home from work on Sunday afternoon.   Inspector Pace explained that the preliminary investigation showed that the homeowner was licensed to carry, and was protecting his property after asking the intruder to leave Investigators are seen entering the home in Philadelphia after the intruder was shot inside 'I heard a little pop pop pop. Next thing you know, I came back out, and the tape and all that stuff was up, and then they said my neighbor caught somebody, the dog must've been barking, caught somebody trying to break in his house,' she said. She described the neighbor who was defending his property as a 'good neighbor, very good neighbor.' This comes after a fraught weekend for Philadelphia - with at least six shootings recorded in the past 48 hours.   Pennsylvania operates under a Stand Your Ground law which justifies the use of force, sometimes deadly, if a person needs to defend themselves or their property. Inside the home, people are protected by the Castle Doctrine, which allows them to use force without a duty to retreat if they are attacked in their homes.  No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.