A FAMILY have been left in shock after waking to discover cat burglars raided their home while they slept.

James Brand, of Birch Avenue, Dovercourt, awoke to a startled cry from his girlfriend Crystal following the raid in the early hours on Tuesday.

The crooks managed to gain entry by forcing open the front door, before searching the bottom floor of the house for valuables.

They snatched several items including a laptop computer, a wallet, a purse and even a baby’s changing bag before making off in Mr Brand’s £5,000 Vauxhall car.

The thieves proceeded to use Mr Brand’s contactless bank card to make several transactions at shops and stores around the town.

Mr Brand, 30, said: “I just woke up in the morning and heard my missus shouting from downstairs.

"She is still in shock.

“If I had caught them in my house I would have dealt with it myself.

“We called the police and they said they would come and take fingerprints, but they were surely wearing gloves.

“They took bank cards and were spending through the night.

“There is a big alley that runs along the back of our house, and I had said it was a matter of time until our shed was broken into.

“So I had alarms fitted and shutters, only for my house to get broken into.”

He added: “It is going mad around here. You just don’t see the police around here anymore.

“We have lived down this road for two years and have never had a problem previously.”

Crooks also targeted a home in East Street, Dovercourt, on Monday at about 7pm.

A resident, who did not want to be named, said burglars “trashed” her house while she and her children were out.

She said: “It is absolutely horrible.

"I have two young kids, one two-week-old and one two-year-old, and they have been through all of their stuff.

“It is disgusting. They came through the back door, apparently they must have had a screwdriver as they have popped a panel out the bottom of the door.”

The burglars took an Xbox One games console, jewellery and the spare keys for the house.