A home invasion early Tuesday morning has put the quiet community of Heath on high alert.
Allison Sterrett was fast asleep at 1:30 a.m. when she was woken up by her two dogs who wouldn't stop barking.
"It was excessive," Sterrett said, adding that she thought her teenage daughter was in the kitchen with friends.
But when Sterrett walked in, she was confronted by two masked strangers in her home, their arms full of her belongings, including her purse.
Much of the home invasion is caught on surveillance footage, but the scariest part occurs just off camera.
Sterrett startled one of the men as she entered the kitchen before realizing he wasn't alone.
"Then another guy came running out around the corner, came out with a big crowbar swinging at me and screaming," Sterrett said.
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She said he swung the crowbar at her, knocking her down as her 11-year-old daughter ran in to see what was causing all the noise. She was the one who called 911.
"We're all lucky to be alive at this point," Sterrett said, shaken but physically OK.
She shared the surveillance footage with NBC 5 in the hopes that the two men will be caught – and caught quickly.
"They came in with masks and gloves, crowbar, scissors," Sterrett said. "They were armed, and they were protecting themselves. It was planned."
According to the time stamps on the video footage, the men were inside the home for about 15 minutes before Sterrett woke up and chased them out.
Heath Police Sgt. Brandon Seery said the police department typically deals with one or two break-ins per year, and a home invasion like this is extremely rare.
Seery said they are also investigating another case two blocks away from the Sterrett home that occurred on Dec. 20. There, two men tried to break-in to a locked home, but were unsuccessful.
Seery said that it doesn't seem as though the two incidents are linked because the suspect descriptions are different, but it is cause for concern.
"It's escalating and they've shown aggressive behavior by swinging the baton," Seery said.
One of the men is wearing a white OU hooded sweatshirt and shorts. The other is in a white hoodie and jeans. Both are wearing gloves and have masks covering their faces.
Anyone with information is asked to call Heath Police at 972-771-7724.
