Keith and Di Blessing (Image: Nine News)
An elderly couple are fighting for their lives in hospital after they were allegedly stabbed during a violent home invasion, but not before shooting the alleged intruder when he attempted to force his way back into their home a second time.
Police and emergency services were already en route to the scene in a remote town in Australia, with the elderly couple having called for help during an attempted home invasion at their Torrington home, in rural New South Wales.
As per the Sydney Morning Herald, the couple have now been identified as Keith Blessing, 75, and wife Di, 72.
First responders were called to the NSW property, located about 41 miles south-west of the rural hub of Tenterfield, by the couple just after 12.15am on Thursday morning following a break-in. Police allege the couple were at their home in country NSW when Joshua Dylan Trethewey, 34, entered their house and attacked them both with a knife.
In the violent flurry, Di suffered a chest wound and collapsed. Her husband was slashed across the abdomen, before the intruder fled onto the porch of the home.
Keith and Di Blessing were allegedly both severely injured in a horror home invasion (Image: Nine News)
But the drama wasn’t over just yet. As the Blessings dialled 000 for help – the Australian emergency number – Trethewey allegedly attempted to reenter the home for a second attempt.
The homeowners, however, were this time more prepared, with Keith now armed. And so, the alleged attempted robber was shot, thus thwarting his second and final attempt to gain access to the brave couple’s home.
Police raced from the nearby regional hubs of Tenterfield and Glen Innes, alongside paramedics from NSW Ambulance.
The couple were treated at the scene for serious injuries before being airlifted across the border for treatment at Gold Coast University Hospital in the neighbouring state of Queensland. Both were airlifted in a serious condition, with both Keith and Di understood to have undergone emergency surgery.
Their alleged attacker, Trethewey, was also treated at the scene for his injuries. He received care from paramedics for a gunshot wound to the abdomen before he was transported by ambulance to NSW’s Armidale Hospital, where he has been kept under police guard while he recovers. It is understood he is in a serious but stable condition.`
NSW Police confirmed Trethewey had been charged with two counts of cause wounding/grievous bodily harm to person with intent to murder on Thursday morning.
NSW Police Detective Superintendent Chris McKinnon said: “We don’t believe he’s known to the couple. We’re certainly investigating all the circumstances of what occurred today, but at this stage I’m unable to say why he tried to re-enter the house.”
“To our knowledge, nothing was stolen from the residents.”
Map of NSW and Queensland, showing Torrington (Image: Map of NSW and Queensland, showing Torrington)
Supt McKinnon said Keith was initially able to defend himself after retrieving a knife from the kitchen, injuring the alleged attacker.
“[The attacker] then left the house, but then he tried to re-enter, and the male had retrieved a firearm and fired one shot at the offender,’ Supt McKinnon told Australian talk back radio show 2GB.
Supt McKinnon later praised the elderly man for his actions.
“He certainly did his best, obviously under very difficult circumstances to defend himself and his partner,” the policeman said. “It was quite impressive that he was able to do that, given the extent of the injuries that he had suffered.”
Police say the gun was a licensed firearm.
Trethewey was refused bail and was due to appear before in Bail Division Court later today, but just minutes into the court session, the judge told the gathered press that the matter would not go ahead as the “bedside hearing” had been “refused”.
A longtime friend of the couple, Norm, described the incident was devastating to the same Sydney radio station.
“Great guy, absolutely great guy. Husband and wife, and he wouldn’t hurt a fly, and they live a peaceful, calm life,’ he told 2GB.
“[Now] They’re bloody [hurt]… I just cannot believe it. They put fruit out the front for people to come and get, so they can look after their neighbours.”
The couple remain in a critical but stable condition.