BAUXITE, Ark. (FOX16) – A Central Arkansas couple comes home only to find an intruder inside their house.
Linda Kyzer lives a few houses down from where it happened.
“Lock your doors. Get a dog,” said Kyzer.
Simple advice she said could have saved her neighbors a headache recently.
Saline County deputies said a 63-year-old man and his 71-year-old wife came home from a long day out Saturday evening, to find the intruder, identified as Levi Ellis, about to fire up the grill on their back porch.
“I don’t know, I guess I’d call the cops for sure,” said Kyzer.
The couple did more than that.
Unsure of Ellis’ intent, the couple held him at gunpoint until deputies arrived.
“I guess you do what you have to do,” said Kyzer.
When authorities arrived, Ellis told them he’d been in the house four hours, after crashing a car, driven by his girlfriend, nearby.
“I’m thinking possible mental issues, drugs or both,” said Kyzer.
Ellis told deputies he had walked through an unlocked front door, took a nap and was about to cook three steaks … washing them down with vodka.
Patricia Anderson said she’s good friends with the couple.
“It doesn’t matter if he’s cooking or using my toilet, I mean he has no business in my home,” said Anderson. “I don’t know if he doesn’t mean me any harm, if he’s in my home and he’s uninvited.”
She could only imagine what she would have done had she been in the same situation.
“It makes me mad. Just like I am and everybody around here, we work for what we have,” said Anderson. “It’s not right that someone just comes into your home and decides they’re going to take whatever they want.”
She’s glad no one was seriously hurt … hoping her friends keep their door locked from now on.
“I don’t leave mine unlocked anymore for the simple fact that you’ve got crazy people who think their idea of working for a living is coming in and stealing for someone else,” said Anderson.
Ellis is behind bars tonight on residential burglary and domestic battery charges. His bond is set at $5,000.