Quick response praised

A CRANBOURNE West woman has praised the efforts of Cranbourne police after they responded immediately to a break-in and caught the burglar.
Melanie Baker, who was 15 weeks pregnant at the time, narrowly escaped injury after she and her husband, Kris, confronted a man who had broken into their home last month.
The couple had heard noises coming from the garage at about 9pm on Tuesday, 18 April.
Mrs Baker said when they approached the man, he picked up a golf club and swung it, narrowly missing her as she jumped back.
The man then fled down the street with the golf club and a bag of stolen goods.
But Mrs Baker said they could not have asked for a better response from the police.
“They were there before my husband had hung up the phone,” she said.
She said they stayed until the canine unit arrived.
“The dog started walking around doing a search but didn’t find anything. After they left and all the lights were gone, the guy walked out. But there was still a policeman with a dog waiting. Then the rest of them all came back.”
Mrs Baker said her two-year-old son Jackson thought it was wonderful having the police over. “He was getting them to play DVDs for him. They put his hand on the fridge and dusted for fingerprints.”
But Mrs Baker said she had been somewhat more affected by the experience and declined to be in a photograph as she was still shaken by the incident.
“I’m a bit paranoid. We’ve been doing checks with the cricket bat every time we hear a noise. Kris is dealing with it better, but I think he felt a bit helpless at the time.”
Mrs Baker said her baby was doing fine. She is now 19 weeks pregnant.
“I just want to thank the police. We were very happy with their response and the outcome. They were so patient.”
A Cranbourne man, 28, was charged with aggravated burglary and theft. He was remanded in custody to appear before the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court at a later date.