After a business owner closed up shop Thursday night in downtown Philadelphia, he returned home to a terrifying surprise.

He discovered two men had been following him, and as he got outside his northeast Philadelphia house, the two men confronted the 41-year-old victim with a gun and a crowbar and tried to rob him, police told WPVI-TV.

"A guy came behind him and then put a gun behind him and told him to open the door and let him in," the man's wife told the station off camera. "He wanted to come to our house."

No way

But the homeowner refused to back down and began fighting with the crooks, WPVI said, pushing and kicking to keep them from getting into his house.

His wife explained to the station what happened next.

"I opened the door — not all the way — and my husband's right at the door. The guy's two steps down. He still tried to kick him while my husband sneaked in quickly. And we slammed the door shut," she told WPVI.

The couple locked the door and called 911, the station said.



One suspect caught

Police arrived on the scene and spotted the two suspects in a backyard, WPVI noted.

Image source: WPVI-TV video screenshot

"They chased the one male," Chief Inspector Scott Small told the station. "That 38-year-old perpetrator was positively identified by the homeowner and his wife."



Image source: WPVI-TV video screenshot

The suspect in custody will be charged with attempted robbery and other offenses, WPVI reported. The only description of the suspect who got away was that he was wearing dark clothing, the station added.

Nothing was taken from the home, and no one was injured, WPVI noted, and police found the crowbar they believe one of the suspects used.

Image source: WPVI-TV video screenshot

'Things could've been a lot worse'

The detective told the station it's a good thing the couple fought back.

"Great job done by the homeowner and his wife fighting off these two would-be robbers," Small told WPVI. "Things could've been a lot worse. So it's a pretty good ending because we made one apprehension."

Still, the homeowner's wife told the station they will likely move.