A Marine Park man who allegedly opened fire on a crowd of rowdy teens outside his house on Saturday night is being hailed as a hero by the mother of one of the victims. Larisa Kaprovskaya's 21-year-old daughter Yana was hit by shrapnel in her left leg when Thomas "Teen Hunter" Dunikowski discharged approximately ten rounds with his semi-automatic Bushmaster 5.56 mm. One teen was hit in the neck and hospitalized, another got fragments in his left thigh and arm. Dunikowski was arrested later that night, but Kaprovskay says he should be hailed a hero, not condemned as a criminal.

"He shot because he wants to protect us," Kaprovskaya, 50, tells the Daily News. "I don't know what would have happened to us if he didn't try to protect us. I appreciate him. It was so dangerous." Kaprovskaya says her daughter wasn't seriously hurt, and defends Dunikowski as a "very nice" family man.

There were about 30 teens hanging out on Dunikowski's stoop, and some were knocking over garbage cans and vandalizing cars, neighbors tells the News. Dunikowski got into a scuffle with the teen he allegedly shot in the neck; the 17-year-old has been identified as Francis Ruan. Police say Dunikowski punched Ruan in the face, breaking his glasses, but the teens still refused to disperse. That's when Dunikowski allegedly went back inside, locked and loaded his Bushmaster, and started teen target practice from a second story window, firing about about 30 times. That probably got their attention!

Kaprovskaya isn't the only mother of a victim speaking to the press. Ruan's mother fails to see the heroism of Dunikowski's actions, and tells the News, "He's a wonderful boy. The guy just went crazy."