SHELTON — A homeless man met a Hall County deputy sheriff the hard way after he allegedly walked into the officer’s home.

Around 3:23 a.m. Monday, the Buffalo County 911 center received a report of a home invasion in progress in Shelton. When the deputy arrived, he saw an off-duty Hall County deputy with the 23-year-old homeless man at the entrance to the home.

The off-duty officer knew the suspect from previous contacts in Hall County, Buffalo County Court records say.

The investigation revealed the man had been walking from the Wood River area to Gibbon and had stopped to rest near a tree near the Union Pacific Railroad tracks, near the off-duty deputy’s home.

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After getting cold, the homeless man walked across the street and entered the porch area of the off-duty deputy’s home where the dog began barking. The off-duty officer awoke and discovered the homeless man.

The homeless man told officers he didn’t see the off-duty deputy’s marked Hall County patrol car parked in the driveway.

The homeless man was arrested and charged in Buffalo County Court with misdemeanor first-degree trespassing. He later posted a $2,500 personal recognizance bond and is scheduled to appear in court later this month.