ADAMS COUNTY, Colo. -- An Adams County man said he was enraged to discover that an intruder broke into his home while he and his wife were inside.

Guy Sitzman told 7NEWS that his home has been targeted four times since Sept. 20.

"The first time the intruder broke in, my wife and I were in bed," Sitzman said. "The burglar got away with some cash and cell phones."

On Sept. 28, the intruder tried to break in again and was caught on videotape.

He apparently made a third attempt Oct. 1. Sitzman was reviewing the security video late that day when he noticed the thief had come back.

"He walked around my house for 15 minutes, prying, pulling and lifting at stuff and trying to break into the garage," the homeowner said. "I realized this is what this guy does for a living."

Sitzman continued to watch the tape, which showed the intruder unscrewing two light bulbs activated by a motion detector. He watched as the thief then pulled out a hunting knife and removed a screen from one of his windows.

The thief then walks out of frame. When the security system reached the end of the recording, the cameras went "live."

Sitzman said he was stunned to see the intruder walk out the back door of his house with his rifle.

Angered, the homeowner grabbed another gun, and ran out the garage door where he confronted the intruder in his back yard.

"I fired a couple of warning shots in that direction and realized that if he turned on me with my guns, I would have been backlit and dead," Sitzman said.

One of the shots went through a neighbor's fence. Sitzman said he doesn't know where the other shot landed.

That concerns investigators.

"We never, ever want the public to take matters into their own hands," said Candi Baker of the Adams County Sheriff's Office. "It's never a good idea to fire arbitrarily into the darkness because you never know who else might be out there or where the round is going to land."

When asked if Colorado's Make My Day law applies in a case where the homeowner confronts an intruder outside, Baker said, "The Make My Day law is not clearly defined and it is a legal question."

Baker added, "There are many components and factors that need to be taken into consideration before that can be applied."

Sitzman said the intruder dropped the loaded rifle and a handgun that he also took from the house, while bolting over a fence.

He got away.

Investigators said they are following up several leads.