13 First Responders Exposed To Narcotics During Largo Welfare Check: Reports

LARGO, FL — Fourteen people, including multiple first responders, were exposed to an unknown narcotic during a Thursday night welfare check at a Largo apartment, multiple reports said.

Four Largo police officers and a medic were hospitalized in the hazmat situation, the Largo Police Department said in a news release. They were released as of Friday afternoon and are recovering.

Police responded to an apartment at 7 Glades Circle, just off Ulmerton Avenue, just after 6 p.m. for a welfare check after a woman called 911 to report that her boyfriend, later identified as 30-year-old Richard Charles, was acting irrationally by screaming, smoking marijuana, pacing, and “talking gibberish,” WFLA reported.

Officers encountered a man who was “experiencing a hallucinogenic narcotic episode,” police said.

When the woman opened the door, officers saw Charles standing behind her while completely nude, reports said.

Officers asked the woman to leave the apartment before getting into an altercation with Charles, who was eventually taken into custody, Fox 13 said.

After they took the man into custody, first responders began experiencing symptoms of an unknown narcotic exposure and were transported to area hospitals, police said.

Charles was also taken to a hospital for treatment.

He was charged with battery on health service personnel, authorities said. Additional charges could be filed as the investigation continues.

In total, 14 people — 13 first responders and the suspect — were exposed to the unknown drug, and five first responders were hospitalized, reports said. Others were decontaminated and treated at the scene.

Investigators are working to determine what narcotic was involved, police said.

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