87-Year-Old Woman Fights Off Man Who Broke Into Her Home

According to local news, an 87-year-old retired teacher told how she fought off a house invader and then served him cookies in her kitchen before alerting police last week.

Marjorie Perkins of Brunswick, Maine, USA, was sleeping in her bed when she was awakened at 2 a.m. to the frightening sight of someone staring at her.

“I woke up to see a male standing over me by my bed, telling me he was going to cut me,” Perkins told News Center Maine.

The 87-year-old woman, who lives alone, said she jumped out of bed and put on shoes, ready to defend herself.

“I thought to myself, ‘If he’s going to cut, I’m going to kick.’ So I jumped into my shoes,” she told the Times Record.

According to Perkins, the invader, a teenager, pushed her against the wall and began punching her — but she struck him back.

As she yelled for help, she reached for a nearby chair to use as a shield and repeatedly beat him with it.

“He kept punching me and pushing me,” Perkins told the Times Record, adding that a blow to the head caused a bruise.

Despite Perkins’ request that he leave her at home, the exhausted teenager walked into the kitchen.

“He said he was awfully hungry and hadn’t had anything to eat for quite a while,” she told the newspaper. “And I said, ‘Well, here’s a box of peanut butter and honey crackers. You can have that whole box.’ I gave him two containers of Ensure and I gave him two tangerines.”

While the burglar was snacking in her kitchen, Perskins dialed 911 on her rotary phone “as fast as [she] could,” she added.

The teenager fled before police came, but a police dog tracked him down a few blocks away, where he was staying.

According to the Times Record, he was detained and charged with burglary, criminal threatening, assault, and using liquor while a teenager. The 87-year-old stated that when he broke into her home, he had a water bottle full with alcohol with him.

The teenager, whose identity and age were not disclosed, is being kept at the Long Creek Youth Development Center in South Portland.

According to the local newspaper, Perkins identified her alleged attacker as a boy who used to mow her yard many years ago and believed he was approximately 17 years old currently.

“He did a darn good job,” she said. “I hope he gets help.”

The former elementary school teacher and line dance instructor says the child gained access to her home by moving aside a screen next to her window-unit air conditioner and climbed through the open space.

The grandmother says she’s happy she didn’t let fear take over and prevent her from defending herself.

“Don’t sit and cry about it… Be ready to kick and pick up a chair and hit somebody with it,” she said laughing.