CYPRESS : Man Honored for Aiding Neighbors

In a commendation presented this week, the City Council credited Louis Michael Weiser with saving the lives of his neighbors when he killed a suspected robber who broke into their home Dec. 29.

Authorities said the suspect, 26-year-old Hector Armando Reyes of Anaheim, and an accomplice had robbed a McDonald’s restaurant in Los Alamitos earlier that night. The accomplice was arrested, but Reyes ran into Cypress Village and apparently hid in yards before entering the home of Moshe and Sandra Joshua on Matinicus Court, authorities said.

As Reyes and Moshe Joshua struggled downstairs, Sandra Joshua called police and armed herself with a knife and a handgun that didn’t work, police said. She then climbed out of her bedroom window and as she hung from a balcony railing screaming, Weiser ran over to help her. He then armed himself with a shotgun and returned, after Sandra Joshua repeatedly stabbed Reyes in the back.

Reyes managed to wrestle Sandra Joshua’s gun away while struggling with both the Joshuas, Sgt. Ron Dickson said.

Weiser saw the gun and fired once, fatally hitting Reyes in the chest. The couple were not seriously hurt.

For his action, council members called Weiser a “hometown hero” as they presented him with a framed resolution.

“My reward comes every morning when I see the smiling faces of my neighbors, who needed my help,” Weiser said.