Police in Lebanon said a city resident used a legally owned handgun to defend himself, when another man threatened and attacked him with a knife Thursday.

City police were dispatched to two calls at 11:35 p.m. Thursday, the first for shots fired at North Fifth Avenue and East Weidman Street and another for an assault with a knife a short distance away in the 300 block of North Fifth Avenue, according to a city police news release.

Responding officers quickly discovered the two calls were related, specifically the victim of the knife attack, a 35-year-old city resident, had fired a legally owned handgun at his attacker, an unknown Hispanic male, police said.

The man with the knife was gone by the time officer arrived to secure the scene, but, according to the release, the victim gave police the following account of the assault:

The victim, who did posses a permit to carry a firearm, was walking west in the 500 block of Scull Street, when his assailant ran up to him and said, in Spanish, "I am going to kill you."

The assailant then lunged at the victim with what appeared to be a small knife in his hand and dealt the victim several superficial wounds in an attempt to stab him.

The victim then pulled his handgun and fired three shots at his attacker, causing the unidentified man to flee south on Scull Street.

There was no evidence recovered at the scene that the victim's assailant was injured by the gunfire, according to the news release. The assailant stood approximately 5 feet, 10 inches tall and weighed about 170 pounds, according to the victim's description to police.

The victim also told police the man wore a mask or other piece of clothing that partially covered his face.

Anyone who witnessed the incident or who can provide police any additional information was asked to call the Lebanon police at 717-272-6611 or Crimes Stoppers of Lebanon County at 717-270-9800.