Police are hunting thieves who invaded a Whangarei home and assaulted a sleeping man.
The alarm was raised yesterday when a police patrol found a distressed man on Maunu Rd about 2am. The man had been alone in his house when thieves entered the small cottage-like property.
Whangarei police Acting Detective Sergeant Aaron Crawford said the man had been assaulted and was taken to hospital. Police were still trying to establish how many people had been involved in the incident.
"We would like to hear from anyone who was about Maunu Rd in the early hours of yesterday morning and saw any people or vehicles moving about in this area," Mr Crawford said. "We believe a weapon may have been used but unfortunately at this stage we can't be sure what that was or how many there were."
Several items of property were stolen during the attack but police would not reveal what they were.
