Police in Victoria are searching for three burglars who attacked an innocent man and threatened him with a gun in a shocking case of mistaken identity.
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The victim, 50, was woken up as the intruders forced their way into his Ringwood East home in Melbourne's eastern suburbs at 1am on June 15, 2022.
The group repeatedly attacked the man, stomped on his head and demanded access to his safe.
They searched his house and allegedly took a safe containing personal documents, as well as a wallet and mobile phone before making their getaway in a black or grey sedan.
The victim suffered a fractured skull, broken arm, fractured ribs, loss of vision in one eye and bad bruising.
In the months after the attack he couldn't see out of his left eye, drive or do any physical work.
"When the incident happened, I started living with my mum. I haven't been living at home since and I don't want to go back," the man told investigators.
"Just too many bad memories. I just always think that something else could happen and I wouldn't be able to sleep at night."
Police say they now have more clues than they did in the immediate aftermath of the attack including an intended target, motive and an alleged getaway car.
"This incident was a shocking case of mistaken identity, which left a victim traumatised and severely injured," according to Detective Sergeant Hannah Thompson.
"We are currently in the process of systematically working our way through a list of people potentially connected to the incident," Det Sgt Thompson said.
"My message to anyone involved is this isn't going away - hand yourself into police before we come knocking."
The attackers were dressed in black clothing and one was armed with a what's described as a single barrel shotgun tucked into his shoe.
Australian Associated Press
