Hinckley man runs for his life after intruder shoots through his front door, trashes house

HINCKLEY, Ohio (WOIO) - Brett Puntel’s home is destroyed after he said a man broke in looking to kill him just after midnight Saturday.

Daniel Jon Bridle was arrested in the attack charged with attempted murder. Puntel said Bridle is his girlfriend’s ex-boyfriend.

“He rang the doorbell he said open the door. I said ‘no.’ I turned around and shots came through,” said Puntel.

Investigators determined he was aiming for Puntel. The door and front windows of Puntel’s Walden Pond Circle home are broken and the front entry way shows marks from at least three gun shots.

Puntel escaped out the backdoor. His dog, Sushi, ran out behind him.

“I was scared for my life I ran out the door in my underwear,” he said. He said he ran up the street at least ten houses, without shoes, until he could flag down police.

“While that was taking place, he was trashing my house,” he said. Puntel said he believes Bridle was searching for him.

“I just bolted through the backyard, and I could hear him shooting up the house and doing other things.”

After a full day of cleanup Sunday, his house is still a disaster.

“Senseless. He just totally just trashed everything,” he said.

He said his refrigerator was turned over. His couch, tables, china cabinet, coffee tables, exercise equipment, crystal vases were all turned over and destroyed.

His Range Rover and a Corvette, which were parked in his garage, have completely smashed windows, smashed mirrors and holes in the side.

Puntel said Bridle took a shovel to the cars and even shot the back of the Corvette.

“I have nice things. [He] turned all my furniture upside down, broke china cabinets, broke televisions, turned up the refrigerator,” Puntel said.

He said he knew of Bridle through his girlfriend and had seen him before, but the two never spoke before.

“I didn’t ever think he would do something like this,” he said.

He said now he’s trying to figure out how to put it all back together and working with insurance, but he’s glad to be alive and it wasn’t much worse.

“It was totally scary. I’m not that guy,” he said.

Police arrived and arrested Bridle after using a stun gun. Puntel said the departments who responded saved his life and are his “heroes.”

According to Hinckley Police, Bridle does have a criminal record but “nothing violent.” He’s now in the Medina County Jail.

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