ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) – A St. Petersburg man accused of breaking into numerous homes all across the Tampa Bay area is now in jail.

His arrest comes after cops say he picked the wrong house to burglarize.

St. Petersburg detectives believe 35-year-old Lupen Font is a prolific burglar.

In just over two months, they say he’s broken into more than a dozen homes in St. Petersburg, Gulfport and Tampa.

But, his latest crime was almost his last. At a home on Riverside Drive North in St. Petersburg, an armed homeowner almost shot him as police say he tried to break in.

“He came, stole some items, and came back for more a few days later. This is very dangerous criminal,” said Sandra Bentil, spokesperson for the St. Petersburg Police Department.

Police say Font broke in Sunday, stole more than 20 guns and other items, then came back Wednesday.

But this time, the homeowner was waiting, confronted Font, and then fired at him as he sped off.

Neighbor Susan Bauerle is upset gunfire was so close to her home.

“I mean, we have kids. It’s our property. But, I give him credit for what he did,” she said.

Police found Font, six stolen guns and stolen property, a few blocks away.

“He is cooperating with us, so it’s pretty much undetermined at this point how many incidents he’s been involved in, but he’s been tied to several so far,” said Bentil,

That irks Baurle.

“He’s scoping out houses and taking our hard-earned money and it’s not right,” she said.

Jail records show police arrested Font in July of last year for the same thing.

He was out on probation for those crimes when he was picked up for this latest round.

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