Shortly after putting her son to bed on Good Friday, Kristy Dunlop heard something in the kitchen.
Police say the mother-of-two found an alleged intruder trying to steal a laptop, and the terrifying ordeal ended with the 43-year-old needing stitches in her head.
Mrs. Dunlop told 9News about the incident, saying her six-year-old son is terrified of strangers in the house; ‘literally witnessed his worst nightmare’.
The incident happened in Perth’s eastern suburb of Riversdale at around 9pm on March 29.
Mrs. Dunlop said she and her husband accidentally left the garage door open when they got home.
They didn’t realize the door was open, and while Mrs Dunlop was putting her six-year-old to bed, she heard a noise in the kitchen.
Assignment Freelance photo Perth mother-of-two Kristy Dunlop was attacked by a suspected burglar at her home in the city’s east on Friday evening. Image: 9News
She went to investigate and saw someone taking her laptop.
“I came out, confronted him and grabbed him. He was kind of screaming at him to let him go,” Ms Dunlop said.
“We struggled down the hall, he dropped my laptop.”
Police allege Ms Dunlop was then hit in the head with a hammer.
Later in the hospital, six staples were applied to the wound.
Police claimed the intruder also stole a mobile phone and car keys before Mrs Dunlop’s husband chased them away.
‘I think I’m lucky in reality, it could have been a lot worse. They could have been my children,” she said.
‘My six-year-old, who has trouble sleeping because he is afraid of someone coming into the house or breaking into the house, has now literally experienced his worst nightmare and that is very difficult as a parent.’
The police have arrested a 15-year-old boy and are conducting further investigations.