A YOUNG Newcastle East woman who woke to an intruder on top of her as she slept in her bedroom has spoken about her terrifying ordeal with a message for others: “Don’t let it happen to you.”
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The 21-year-old’s frightening encounter has thrown a spotlight on community concern about security in the beachside suburb, which she said had been flooded with people in the past week due to a surfing competition at Newcastle beach.
The woman, who spoke to the Newcastle Herald on the condition of anonymity, said the first thing she noticed when she was woken up about 1am on Friday was that she couldn’t move her legs.
It was then she realised there was someone sitting on top of her.
“I thought it was someone I knew,” she said.
“But then I just kicked and screamed. The next thing I remember was him taking off, he took my handbag on the way out. I must have put my fears aside because after that I started to chase him into the backyard, which probably wasn’t a good thing to do in hindsight, but I just wanted to get him.”
The break-in victim doesn’t remember much more about the incident and is unable to provide a description of the intruder, who fled down a laneway.
However, she does recall waking her neighbours up on Stevenson Place with her screaming as she attempted to draw attention to herself.
“I just wanted someone there [to help],” she said.
Thankfully, her family was inside the house at the time and she was not injured.
“She [her mother] bungled me upstairs and we just waited for the cops,” she said.
The intruder took off with her handbag, but dropped her wallet on the street, which was found by a neighbour in the morning. It is believed the person gained entry to the house through an unlocked door.
“I never thought something like this would happen … I still thought it was a dream the next day,” she said.
She stressed it was an isolated incident, but it was an eye-opener when neighbours shared their own experiences with her. “People have told me in the past week they’ve had strangers who have the confidence to enter the house,” she said.
The woman said she didn’t want her ordeal to change the fabric of the community.
“Something like this shouldn’t scare us, but it should teach us to be mindful,” she said. “It’s such a good community around here … we just need to keep each other informed, and do the simple things like locking the doors.”
There have not yet been any arrests over the break-in, but detectives are investigating. Anyone with information is urged to contact police.