Alleged burglar found sleeping in grandmother's home

NEW PORT RICHEY (FOX 13) - A Bay Area grandmother woke up to a nightmare, as deputies and a K9 descend on her home Monday afternoon.

What they found was an alleged burglar sound asleep inside Crystal Colwell’s home.

“What if while I was sleeping he could have came in and done the unimaginable?” asked Colwell. “The cops kept asking me over and over if I knew him I’m like, I have never seen this gentleman.”

Colwell says she had no idea who Russell Smith was before deputies showed up at her house in New Port Richey to arrest him.

“I came out with the sheriff's office standing right beside me and he was passed out. They had a heck of a time getting him awake,” she said.

Colwell says Smith likely came in through an unlocked front door as she slept in her bedroom around 2 p.m. How long Smith was inside, she's not sure, but she says it was enough time for him to drink some beer and down dozens of pills.

“44 prescription medications he took, on top of drinking the beers, so that's probably why he was passed out,” said Colwell.

Pasco deputies learned about Smith after getting two burglary calls nearby. In one case, officials say he tried stealing a couch by himself.

Then they got a call about a suspicious person and deputies tracked Smith to Colwell's home.

Smith was eventually awakened and cuffed, but Colwell says she wants her mistake of leaving a door unlocked to be a lesson to others.

“Keep your doors locked, don't matter if it's day or night,” said Colwell.

Smith was taken to a hospital for treatment. He'll eventually be brought to the jail on charges of burglary.