Gun-Wielding Thug Breaks Into Apartment. Two of His Female Victims Teach Him a Painful Lesson About Why That's a Bad Idea.

Three men headed for a Maryland apartment over the weekend with robbery on the agenda, police said. And while they probably thought they would all get away with the crime, they didn't account for two of their victims teaching one of them a painful lesson.

While one of the trio stayed outside as a lookout, the other two burst inside the unit in Aspen Hill around 9 p.m. Sunday, police said. Five victims were inside — a man, two women, and two children under the age of four, WUSA-TV said.

Barrington Dean Watts (Image source: WUSA-TV)

But after the robbery one of the women grabbed for the gun of one of the suspected robbers, Barrington Dean Watts, 30, of Baltimore, WUSA-TV said. A struggle commenced and the male robbery victim, 26, was shot in the shoulder.

While police said the other robber and the lookout escaped with money, the victims didn't let Watts get far, wrestling away his gun, beating him severely, and detaining him until officers arrived.

Watts was hospitalized and charged with attempted murder, robbery, assault and felony handgun use, WUSA said.

The shooting victim is expected to recover; the two children who witnessed the attack weren't injured, police said.

Investigators believe the victims and the suspects knew each other, WUSA added.