Business Owner Fatally Shoots Burglar, Perpetrators to Face Murder Charges

The co-owner of a Fort Worth, Texas landscaping company fatally shot a burglar and wounded another early Saturday while attempting to protect his property from the perpetrators. The deceased, 22-year-old Bentley Lenti, had allegedly lived across the street from Herrmann Landscape Co..

Police identified the wounded man as Juan Campos, who is currently in custody at a local hospital. A third man who fled the scene after the shootings is still at large.

Fort Worth police Sgt. Pedro Criado said that the two surviving men face murder charges in the case.

"The way I can explain is that if someone was driving a car and it crashed killing passengers, that driver would be charged," Criado said. "Those two men are accused of bringing that third man with them, and he ended up killed."

Once completed, the investigation of the company co-owner who shot Lenti will be turned over to a Tarrant County grand jury for consideration, police said. The co-owner was not identified by authorities.

The Star Telegram adds:

The co-owner of the business stayed on the property overnight with a firearm because it had been burglarized in the past few days, police said in a news release. About 2 a.m., the co-owner, who was not identified, saw three intruders on the property and went outside with a shotgun while his wife called 911, Criado has said.

One of the men was apparently holding "a shiny object." The co-owner fired a shot, hitting Lenti. "At that time, the other two males began to run at [the] owner," according to the news release.

The co-owner fired several shots, hitting at least one of the other intruders. The pair then fled.