MASKED men tied up, taunted and brandished machetes at the owners of an Ogbourne St George home before stealing many prized possessions.

The incident occurred at around 10.30pm on May 26 in the Southend area when three masked men entered the house while the occupants were at home watching a film.

The occupants heard a noise upstairs and upon going to investigate, one of them, an adult male, was assaulted with a machete.

The three men proceeded to steal jewellery, expensive watches and a large sum of cash, while continuing to assault the male occupant and tying up another, an adult female.

They attempted to steal a vehicle, but were unable to and made off in an unknown direction.

The offenders were described as wearing dark clothing and had either balaclavas or scarves covering their faces.

They are believed to be black or Asian in appearance.

Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey said: “Fortunately the victims were not seriously injured, but it was clearly an extremely terrifying and shocking incident for them in the comfort and safety of their own home.

“I would like to stress that this type of incident is extremely rare in Wiltshire and detectives and the officers and staff on the Community Policing Team are working both on the investigation and in the local community to reassure residents.

“We have had a fantastic response from the public already, which will help in our investigation, but I would ask that if anyone saw people matching the description of these individuals on the night or have any information that might assist the police to get in touch.”

Wiltshire Police is asking anybody who may have information regarding the incident to contact Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey 1772 at Bourne Hill Police Station on 101 or call Crimestoppers 0800 555 111 on where information may be left anonymously if preferred.