N.C. Police Use Severed Finger to ID Attempted Home Invader

BURLINGTON, NC—A severed finger in a glove helped investigators identify the man whose hand got slammed in a door during an attempted home invasion, Burlington police said in a news release.

Vernon Forest Wilson, 67, was arrested Monday in Orange County, transported to Alamance County, and charged with first-degree burglary, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill/inflicting serious injury, and possession of a firearm by a felon. He was jailed on a $250,000 secure bond, according to the news release.

Officers said the attempted home invasion happened Thursday morning on Sellers Mill Road. The resident had started their vehicle in the driveway and was returning to the house when an unknown armed man tried to get into the house. There was a struggle at the door and the suspect's weapon was discharged, grazing the resident's chest. The victim was not seriously injured and did not seek medical attention, police said in the news release.

When crime scene investigators reported to the scene, the suspect's glove, which had fallen off in the struggle, was processed. Inside the glove, CSI found a severed finger, believed to have been cut off when the resident forced the door shut on the suspect's hand.

Investigators said they used the physical evidence to identify Wilson.

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