Massachusetts man in ‘underwear with a machete’ thwarts home invasion attempt

Evan Luongo says he used a machete to stop a home invasion attempt. (WFXT)

A Massachusetts resident who says he keeps a machete under his bed is warning two burglary suspects to stay away after a harrowing experience in which he thwarted a home invasion attempt.

Evan Luongo said he was listening to a meditation app on his phone Monday night when he was startled by the sound of someone breaking into his home in Lynn, outside of Boston. The 37-year-old grabbed his machete and went to investigate – soon spotting his home office door closed with the lights on.

"If I go in there, I have to be ready to die, but I may have to be ready to kill someone," Luongo told WFXT. "I knew I was embarking into chaos."

Luongo said he kicked open the door and started screaming at the two men to drop their weapons.

“I have a shaved head, a crazy beard, I work out, climb mountains, run races, I’m covered in tattoos and I was in my underwear with a machete,” Luongo said in an interview with WCVB. “I think most people are going to comply with that guy.”

Luongo said the two men – identified by police as 19-year-old Adelson Fedna, a Malden High School junior armed with a kitchen knife, and a 16-year-old juvenile who had a BB gun – listened to his demands and waited until police arrived.

The two are now facing armed burglary charges. Lynn Police told CBS Boston they believe both men were in the neighborhood to buy marijuana and decided to break into a home at random.

"I hold no ill will. People do dumb things. I don't want to see them burn," Luongo told WFXT. "But in the same sense, don't come back. Please don't come back."