Tyler

By MALENA OGLES
Staff Writer

A Tyler man remains hospitalized after he was brutally attacked and
robbed inside his home late Saturday night.

The victim, identified by the Tyler Police Department as 21-year-old
Jeremy Smith, returned to his home in the 1900 block of Sunnybrook
Drive around 11 p.m. to find several unknown black males burglarizing
the house.

According to information from the Tyler Police Department, Smith was
assaulted by one of the armed men who fired a shot into the ceiling of
the home before fleeing.

The men then took Smith's truck, a white 1996 Dodge pickup with the
Texas license plate number 92JTG7 and left the area.

Family members of the victim said that the stolen truck had a decal
on the back window that read: "Kayla's Truck, In Loving Memory of
Kayla Jean Smith." The decal, written in blue also contained an image
of a little girl praying. Family said that the decal was in memory of
Smith's sister, who was killed in 2004 after being struck by a drunken
driver.

Smith suffered non life-threatening injuries from the attack and is
currently listed in good condition at East Texas Medical
Center in Tyler.

Police said the incident is still under investigation.

Anyone with information on the crime is asked to contact the Tyler
Police at 903-531-1000.