Arizona salesman shot in the back by 80-year-old man speaks out
Salesman shot in North Scottsdale speaks out
21-year-old window cleaner recounts the terrifying moments after he was allegedly shot by an 80-year-old man in a neighborhood in Scottsdale. FOX 10's Taylor Wirtz has more.
PHOENIX - The door-to-door salesman who police say was shot in the back by an 80-year-old in a North Scottsdale neighborhood is speaking out.
The backstory:
The shooting happened on Sept. 13 in a neighborhood near Pima and Hawknest roads. Police found the victim with a gunshot wound to his back. The man was taken to the hospital and is stable, but told police he couldn't feel his legs after the shooting.
The suspect has been identified as 80-year-old Patrick McBride. Per court documents, McBride’s wife called 911, telling dispatchers her husband shot the man, but she didn't know why. McBride, meanwhile, claimed he grew suspicious upon meeting the man, and found him still at the neighborhood gate minutes later. He says the man rode toward him with a cell phone raised. Fearing for his safety, McBride drew his weapon.
Shooting victim says he still has nightmares
The victim, 21-year-old Juan Hoffman, said doctors told him there is a chance he will never walk again. While he has tried to stay positive about what happened to him, he still has nightmares about what happened.
Hoffman told us he never anticipated what would happen while selling window cleaning door-to-door in the North Scottsdale gated neighborhood. Feeling dehydrated, he knocked on one door for water. That is when he says McBride came out, angry he was there, saying it was a private community.
"He was just all red and just yelling at me," Hoffman said.
Hoffman tried to leave, but realized he couldn't find his wallet. He says McBride confronted him again near the gate.
"I said, I'm not leaving without my wallet. And he pretty much said, 'Oh yeah?' And that's when he lifted his left side of his shirt. That's when I saw his gun."
Dig deeper:
Court records say McBride claimed the gun went off by accident while swiping Hoffman’s hand away, which Hoffman disagrees.
"I don't think it went off accidentally at all," he said. "I never raised my hands towards him."
Hoffman says he turned to leave, and heard a gunshot.
"I couldn't move my legs. Everything went fuzzy."
He says at first, neither of them realized he was shot.
"He's like, 'get up.' I’m like 'I can't.' Then he like grabbed me and pulled me over... And he was like, 's**t.' And that's when I realized that I was shot. The only thing that's going through my mind is one, that I was probably going to die. And two, that the asphalt was burning my skin," Hoffman said.
McBride was arrested at the scene, while Hoffman was rushed to the hospital.
What's next:
He is hoping he will learn to walk again.
"I've kind of accepted the fact that I'm probably going to spend most of my life in a wheelchair."
When asked about McBride, Hoffman says he is focused on his own recovery.
"I'm not going to say like, 'I hope he spends the rest of his life in jail,' because I'm sure he has grandkids," said Hoffman. "I'll kind of leave that part up to the judge, I guess."
According to court records, Patrick McBride was formally charged by a grand jury this week. He has pleaded not guilty, with a trial scheduled for sometime in early 2027.
What you can do:
Hoffman's friends have organized a GoFundMe to help with his recovery.
The Source: Information in this report was gathered from police, Juan Hoffman, and court records.