NASSAU COUNTY, Fla. — Stephen Kilpatrick said he could barely believe the situation that unfolded Saturday afternoon at the home of his neighbor, Charles Cribbs.
“It was disturbing that one of his relatives would do something like this. Especially someone that he had taken in and taken care of,” Kilpatrick said.
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According to the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office, Cribbs' teenage grandson Pierce Cribbs was involved in the armed robbery and shooting at the house in Callahan.
Investigators said another suspect held the 71-year-old at gunpoint while the 16-year-old searched for other weapons.
“He retrieved the pistol and started telling Mr.Cribbs to do things and Mr. Cribbs refused,” Kilpatrick recalled.
The neighbor added, “At some point in time, I think things got heated and Mr. Cribbs was shot two times.”
Deputies say this Nassau Co. teen was involved in the armed robbery and attempted murder of his own grandfather. @ActionNewsJax @WOKVNews pic.twitter.com/G5zPF3tyQs
— Beth Rousseau (@BethANJax) May 29, 2019
Nassau County Sheriff Bill Leeper told Action News Jax the elder Cribbs was shot in the face with rat shot ammunition intended to kill small animals or pests.
The sheriff said the teen is listed as a runaway from the same house where he’s accused of the crime.
Deputies don’t believe Pierce Cribbs pulled the trigger, but it was still under investigation Wednesday.
Kilpatrick said he had several previous encounters with the young man and described him as seemingly well-behaved.
Kilpatrick said he spoke with the elder Cribbs Sunday when he got home from the hospital.
“He was just so fortunate. Had it not been, to the large extent nonlethal, he probably wouldn’t be with us today," Kilpatrick explained.
On Wednesday, deputies were still searching for two others believed to have been involved with the incident.
Investigators said one was in the home with Cribbs while the other was waiting in a white Chevrolet truck to drive the pair away.
Anyone with information should contact the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office at 904-225-5174
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