Man suffers severe arm injuries
Updated ,first published
A young man suffered “life-changing” injuries after intruders cut off his hand with a machete before stealing a large sum of money from the till at his home in Sydney’s south-west, police said.
The victim was unknown to police and it is believed the Greenacre home was targeted because the family living there ran a significant and successful business in western Sydney.
NSW Police Superintendent Rodney Hart said the 23-year-old victim underwent surgery on Saturday morning.
“This was a brutal, violent attack that was extremely traumatic for the family,” Hart said.
“This young man will have suffered life-changing injuries.”
Police allege four masked men arrived at the property on Banksia Road in a dark SUV just before 2am on Saturday, kicked in the front door and set off the security alarm system, waking those upstairs.
Armed with sharp weapons, including machetes, the intruders rushed to the upper floor where the conflict took place.
“At this point the 23-year-old victim exited the bedroom and was confronted by the males,” Hart said.
“One of the men struck him with what we believe was a machete and cut his hand.”
The victim’s father then confronted the attackers, who forced him to hand over a large sum of money from the safe in the master bedroom.
The attackers fled the scene and were last seen heading east on Banksia Road.
The parents, a man and woman in their 40s, and their two other sons, aged 16 and 19, were uninjured.
Hart said the family was not known to police and there was no indication the attack was related to organized crime.
“They’re a family that runs a business in Western Sydney, they’ve been running the business for a number of years, they’re very well known in the community,” he said.
“This appears to be a targeted home invasion where cash was the motive.
“We believe these people were somehow aware that there was cash on the premises and that is what was targeted.”
Hart declined to comment on how much cash was stolen.
Officers spent Saturday morning examining the scene, speaking to neighbors and searching through CCTV footage. They are assisted by State Crime Command and the Raptor Squad.
Police are appealing for anyone who has dashcam footage or was in the area at the time to contact Crime Stoppers.
“We will do our best to identify these individuals and bring them to court,” Hart said.
Start your day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.
