On Friday, a 98-year-old woman scared off an intruder who was subsequently arrested by Yavapai County deputies.
According to the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office (YCSO), at approximately 9:30 a.m., deputies responded to a call of a burglary in progress on East Valley View Lane in Cordes Junction. Deputies were on scene within minutes, but the suspect had already left the home, and it appeared that he had left the area as well.
The elderly wheelchair bound woman who lives alone, says the suspect, John Paul Pastian tried to pry open a bedroom window. When he failed, he brazenly walked into the home through the front door. The woman yelled at him to leave and surprising, he did.
While YCSO Deputies were still on scene, they located the 47-year-old transient from Phoenix, near the victim’s home. A neighbor who had watched Pastian cross his yard, saw him attempt to hide in some trees and to obscure his appearance
by shedding clothing.
Pastian was taken into custody and booked into the Yavapai County Jail on multiple charges including Burglary in the third degree, Criminal trespass in the first degree, Possession of Burglary Tools, and Criminal Damage.