Police Investigating Essex Home Invasion

Police are investigating a Thursday home invasion robbery in Essex, which included forcing two young girls into a closet at gunpoint.

According to police reports, a 50-year-old man was about to leave his home, located on the unit block of Bayview Court, around 11 a.m. with his daughters, ages 4 and 5, when two men wearing masks and displaying handguns approached them in his garage.

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Police said the robbers then forced the three victims back into the house and asked the man where he kept the money. The victim pointed the men to a safe in his ex-wife’s bedroom, which contained deposits from her business.

“This appears to be a targeted home where the suspects planned out the robbery,” said Lt. Scott Huff of the Essex Precinct.

The father and his daughters were then ordered at gunpoint into a walk-in closet where they were bound with duct tape and told to stay for an hour. The robbers then ransacked the house, took the safe—which included an undetermined amount of money—and escaped in the victim’s car, according to reports.

Police said prior to leaving the victims’ house, the robbers took all of the family's phones, placed them in a sink and turned on the faucets to make them inoperable.

The victim’s van was later recovered with the engine running at the intersection of S. Marlyn Avenue and Walnut Grove Road after a motorist watched a man get out of the car and enter another vehicle before speeding away, police said.

Huff said the witness described the getaway vehicle as a gold Toyota Camry with a large dent on the driver’s side panel. No one was hurt during the robbery, according to reports.

“We’re following up any and all leads in this case and hope someone can help point us in the direction of the suspects,” Huff said.

Huff said anyone with information on this case should contact the Essex Precinct at 410-887-0220.