Man, 29, shot after illegally entering 2 homes in Largo, police say

A 29-year-old man was shot by a Largo resident after police say the man forced his way into the front door of one home, tried to enter a second home, then illegally entered a third home early Wednesday.

Jeffrey Smith entered the first home shortly after 6 a.m. and began behaving “in an erratic and paranoid” manner, the Largo Police Department said in a news release Wednesday afternoon.

The resident ran outside to get help from neighbors and Smith followed, kicking the door of a nearby home in a failed attempt to get inside that home, police said.

The resident went to another neighbor’s home in search of help, and the two went inside. Smith ran up to the door and followed them inside the house, according to the release.

Smith was shot during the incident, police said. Patrol officers responded to the area around 6:21 a.m.

Smith was taken to an area hospital for treatment, where he is in critical but stable condition, according to the release.

Investigators believe that Smith was under the influence of alcohol and/or narcotics, police said. He is facing two counts of burglary to an occupied dwelling.

Smith did not know either of the residents, Megan Santo, a spokesperson for the Largo Police Department, told the Times.

The Largo Police Department did not provide any identifying information about the residents or the area in which the shooting took place. Santo declined to say which of the residents shot Smith, saying the “investigation is still ongoing and active.”