Police are appealing for help identifying three intruders who broke into a Winchester Street house in Levin and threatened the occupier in the early hours of Wednesday May 15th.
Police are appealing for help identifying three intruders who broke into a Winchester Street house in Levin and threatened the occupier in the early hours of Wednesday May 15th.
A Levin man was threatened by three knife-wielding intruders in his home after he disturbed them burgling the property while he and his wife slept.
Steven Knight said he woke after hearing noises downstairs and his dog beginning to growl around 3am last Wednesday.
When he went downstairs to investigate he saw torchlights in the dark and encountered three people in the dining room of his Winchester Street house.
Shocked, Knight began yelling at the intruders. He didn't know at the time they were armed with knives.
"I stopped and just yelled 'get of my f***ing house,'" he said. "One of them came towards me and asked me if I wanted to die."
Knight said that because it was so dark in the room, he didn't realise that the intruders had knives - two of which were his own fish filleting knives taken from an outside shed.
"I didn't know they had knives. I think they expected me to run away but I stood my ground."
At that point, one of the three intruders fled, with the other two also fleeing shortly afterwards.
"One chickened out first and went racing out the door," Knight said. "Once one went, the other two chickened out and I saw three shadows run past me."
The intruders managed to steal items they were already holding when disturbed, including two laptops, a mobile phone and charger and a set of keys.
It was only later when he found the scabbard of one of his fish knives on the floor, as well as viewing footage of the three males captured on outdoor security cameras, in which a large knife is clearly visible, that Knight realised the outcome of the encounter could have been far more serious.
"The scary thing is, if it had just been one person I might have rushed in [to the room] and it could have been much worse," he said.
The man who threatened him had a voice that sounded quite young, Knight said.
Video footage also shows the three males appear to be young, possibly in their late teens or early 20s, he said.
They did not seem too worried about the presence of the security camera.
"I imagine they did know they were on video, they just didn't care," Knight said.
He also believed it was probably not their first time committing a similar crime as they seemed to know what they were doing, he said.
A still image from security footage of three intruders at a Levin property. Police are appealing for public assistance identifying them.
The trio gained access to the house initially by forcing open a shut window - the property had been locked but as it was an older house, a window had been prised with a tool, possibly one of the knives.
Since the incident, Knight said his wife had not been sleeping that well, but they were "coming right".
"It knocks you a bit," he said. "How dare they come in there - you should be safe in your house."
A Police spokesperson said they had received a report of a burglary at a Levin property on 15 May and had carried out a forensic examination on the same day.
"Police have carried a range of enquiries as part of this investigation, including examining CCTV footage and forensics. At this stage those responsible have not yet been identified," the spokesperson said.
"We urge anyone with information about this incident to contact Levin Police on 06 366 0500 or anonymously via Crimestoppers at 0800 555 111, quoting file number 190515/4852."
Knight has also shared video footage of the incident on local Facebook groups.
