Coloma homeowner shoots, kills intruder

COLOMA, Mich. -- A homeowner shot and killed a home invasion suspect in his home Thursday morning, according to Coloma Township Police.

Police were dispatched to 5500 block of Paw Paw Lake Road around 2:30 a.m. for reports of a home invasion in progress.

While on the way, dispatchers advised police the homeowner possibly shot the intruder, reports said.

Officers arrived and the homeowner came out of the house with his hands in the air.

Inside the home, officers found 47-year-old Kevin Cox deceased from a single gunshot wound in the home.

The homeowner, who did not want to be identified, told ABC57 he did not know the suspect.

He said Cox entered through a window and the sound woke him up. When the homeowner came out of his room, he saw Cox in his living room, he said.

The homeowner told Cox to lie on the ground several times, but Cox ran at him, so the homeowner shot him one time.

One neighbor said most residents in the area have guns for protection.

"They break in here, I'm going to shoot them. I've got a gun sitting in there. You've got to protect yourself, you don't want to but you have to," Larry Morrin said.

The neighbors did not recognize Cox's name and said they didn't know if he lived nearby, but there is a housing complex nearby where residents move in and out often.

"There's a lot of people coming and going that move in, move out, transient movers, that cause a little bit of trouble there, most of them don’t," said Bob Faulkner.

An autopsy is scheduled in Kalamazoo.

The homeowner's name is being withheld due to the ongoing investigation.

The case will be reviewed by the prosecutor's office once completed.