By Victoria Stone-Meadows
A Hampton Park family has endured a terrifying night inside their own home when an unknown gunman fired bullets into their house on Oaktree Drive.
Police are searching for witnesses following the shooting that occurred just past 8pm on Sunday 9 July.
Five members of the family were home, including a two-year-old child, when about six shots were fired into cars on the property and into a bedroom window.
Resident Mandy, who did not want her surname published, said her and her family had no idea why their house was targeted.
“We are innocent; we have no idea why this has happened,” she said.
“It was so scary and we have done nothing to anybody.”
She said one of the bullets went through her bedroom window.
“I’m lucky I wasn’t in bed,” she said.
“We were just at home watching TV and then we heard two gunshots, well I didn’t know they were gunshots at first, I just heard bangs, and said ‘what’s that’ and I jumped up to go out the front door.
“And then with that I heard bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, then I realised they were gunshots and I grabbed the phone and called the police.”
Mandy said it was her brother who sprang into action and went outside to see what was going on.
“My brother ran down the driveway because he heard them as well,” she said.
“So I was trying to yell at him to get back in the house and don’t run towards it and he ended up chasing the guy down the street. He was on foot, not in a car.”
Despite her brother giving chase, Mandy said there was no way they could tell who the shooter was.
“We couldn’t see him because he had a hoodie on and had it pulled up tight. We couldn’t see anything,” she said.
A nearby neighbour, who did not want to be identified, said this wasn’t the first time something like this had occurred in the area.
“This road is very busy with hooning cars and people yelling. All the time it is quite noisy,” he said.
“We have heard this before, a few times a year, bang, bang, bang, but I don’t know if it’s fireworks or guns.”
The neighbour said he heard the gunshots on Sunday night as well as people yelling in the street.
“I think I heard maybe five or six shots moving up the road; the sound was moving up the road,” he said.
“Someone was yelling and I heard a voice following the shots, the voice followed a few seconds after the shots. They were just yelling, I couldn’t understand them.”
Investigating officer Detective Senior Constable Emily Donnelly said police were appealing for any witnesses to come forward to help their investigation.
“It is believed that one male offender has walked up the driveway and discharged a firearm into a vehicle and also into the lounge room and a bedroom of the property,” she said.
“Anyone with further information is urged to come forward. Please contact Crime Stoppers or the Casey CIU.”
Mandy said her family had lived at the house on Oaktree drive for 38 years and had never been this scared to be in their own home.
“My mum and dad own this house and I care for my mum because she is disabled and my brother and little brother live here,” she said.
“We are terrified. How do I know it’s not going to happen again? Nothing like this has happened before.”
