Anthony Boulware said he caught some burglars by surprise when he came home to find them looting his Laurinburg home.

But Boulware was in for the bigger shock when the men opened fire on him sending him and another to the hospital.

Police say the incident occurred last Thursday after the 36-year old Boulware was welcomed home by a burglar leaving his house on Elizabeth Drive.

"I was coming home from eating at the Waffle House," Boulware said, "I came around the corner and looked around the back yard and saw someone stick his head out my door."

Boulware and two others chased the man around the house.

"I was just thinking about my kids stuff not getting taken," Boulware said. The burglar had fled the house with an X-box 360 and a PlayStation 2.

As they chased the burglar around the house, he threw the stolen items at Boulware.

Then it happened.

"Someone came out the front door shooting," Boulware said.

That's when Boulware and a 15-year old boy were shot.

"I was struck in my left leg," Boulware said. "The bullet went all the way through."

Boulware and the juvenile were both rushed to Scotland Memorial Hospital. Boulware was released, but said he is still on crutches and will be for a while.

The teenager remains in the hospital, according to Boulware.

"He got shot in the left thigh, close to the buttocks, and the bullet went through his stomach," Boulware said.M

Boulware believes that the people got into his home by cutting a hole in the door.

"They took a knife or something and carved out the door to get the lock open," Boulware said.

This has not the only burglary in the area, according Boulware.

"About three or four months ago, someone broke into my neighbors house,"

Boulware said. "Then someone's lawnmower was stolen from their yard."

Detective Brian Gibson said that shootings have been on the rise in recent months, with the LPD handling at least four cases involving a shooting in the past month.

"As far as the county goes, I don't think there has been an increase in shootings, Sheriff Shep JonesJones said. "We are seeing an increase in break-ins."

Jones attributes this to a high unemployment rate in the county.

"We are concentrating our patrol areas in some of the areas where break-ins are happening," Jones said.

If you have any information on this incident, contact the Laurinburg Police Department at (910) 276-3211 or call Crime Stoppers at (910) 291-3333.