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A burglar got more than he bargained for when he broke into a North Shore home - only to be caught and "trussed up like a chicken" by the occupants.
The burglar is believed to have used a ladder to scale the outside wall of a two-storey Milford home late on Saturday while seven family members were inside playing cards and watching a replay of the rugby test.
One of the residents, a young man in his 20s who did not want to be named, said his father was walking up the stairs and noticed a ladder up against the outside fence.
"He went outside to bring it in and on folding it realised it wasn't ours. That raised suspicion and one of my uncles said, 'We should go check upstairs'."
The man's father and two uncles went to investigate and found two bathroom windows open. They then found the burglar in the walk-in wardrobe of the master bedroom.
"The intruder bolted out, pushed my Dad back and made for the bathroom which he came in from."
The men grabbed the burglar by the ankles as he was trying to escape through the bathroom window and dragged him back into the house.
The trio, who were being punched and kicked, then wrestled the struggling intruder to the ground.
During the commotion the young man had activated the house alarm and was on the phone to the police.
"My aunty came to me and said, 'Is there any rope, is there any rope?' so I ran into the garage and got some rope. I passed that to my aunty, who along with my Mum tied him up while the three guys were on him."
An officer yesterday told the Herald that when police arrived minutes later, they found the burglar "trussed up like a chicken".
Detective Sergeant Adam Lough said police commended the family for restraining the intruder until officers arrived - something that didn't happen very often.
"They have obviously been brave in their actions," he said. "You just have to commend them. At the end of the day they have found a person in their house who clearly shouldn't have been there, and assisted the police to make sure he faces justice."
The young man said the burglar was later found to have money and jewellery on him from their home.
His shocked family were coping "incredibly well under the circumstances" but wanted to remind others to be vigilant, even in their own home.
* An unemployed 44-year-old Te Atatu man has been charged with entering the family's home with intent to commit a crime, assaulting two family members and injuring another two while trying to escape.
