I was with my best friend of 31 years, at a restaurant, enjoying a post-softball-game dinner and beer at about 10 p.m. He received a disturbing text message from a neighbor that two suspicious-looking men were at the front door of his house. His family was away, and the house was empty, so he jumped into his truck and took off. I hopped into my vehicle to follow him, but I missed a lengthy traffic light at the only major intersection between the restaurant and his house. I was concerned for his safety, and the only self-defense hardware I had on me was my trusty Surefire E1B Backup®, which I carry with me everywhere.

I reached his house and noticed his panicked body language as I pulled into the side yard. He was on his cell phone with 911 dispatch, and he yelled at me that there were perpetrators in his house. I ran around to the front of the house, noticed the front door ajar, and continued on to the side yard. I heard the screen door slam and hit the area with my E1B's beam. The two guys were shocked, probably thinking I was an officer with such a bright light. They dumped all of the stuff they'd stolen and took off around the back. I reversed my route back around the front and accosted the two, both of whom hesitated momentarily because my vehicle was blocking their escape route. Once again, I hit them with the beam.

One of them jumped under my truck, and the other made a break for it in the other direction. With nothing but my Backup and my voice, the guy under the truck crawled out and surrendered. The police arrived moments later and arrested the thief. The other perpetrator was apprehended later that night. The story made the local news. They didn't give credit to my SureFire, but they should've.

Michael M.
Boca Raton, FL

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