Man Shot in Home Invasion

HOLLISTER, FL -- Authorities are looking for three armed gunmen following an early morning home invasion that put a local man in Shands Gainesville.

Anthony Brown was on the floor bleeding from the bullets in his right leg when Putnam County deputies and rescue arrived. It was around 1:30 Friday morning that police say three men with ski masks kicked in the front door, demanded cash, and then opened fire.

Neighbors were stunned at the news.

"When I first moved here, I didn't lock my doors! Didn't have a gate to my fence. I felt very safe out here," said neighbor Judy Strickland.

Like most of her neighbors, Strickland remembers the way this neighborhood USED to be. Until, they say, the people moved in at the corner where the shooting took place.

"A lot of traffic goes in and out of that house. A LOT of traffic!" said one neighbor, who, fearing repercussions, did not want her face shown. Her husband was awake when the home invasion broke the normally quiet night air.

"He heard three gun shots!"

Putnam County Sheriff's detectives are working the case alongside the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

"And they are actually canvassing the area and interviewing neighbors trying to see if anybody saw anything," said Lieutenant Johnny Greenwood.

"It was early in the morning, but hopefully somebody heard a vehicle or saw a vehicle that can help us out."

State investigators on-scene located tire tracks Friday afternoon believed to be the shooter's.

And as they meticulously gathered the evidence, Judy Strickland and her neighbors contemplate the changing complexion of this once tranquil country road.

"For a dirt road, this is a very busy road. A highly-traveled road."

And with the change, comes the loss of a sense of security. Strickland now has an electric gate, security lights, and more.

"DEADBOLTS! I never leave my door unlocked now!"

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