At Least 6 Robbers Ransack Home

At least six masked men barged into a Woodland Hills home, tied up the couple who live there and made off with thousands of dollars in cash and jewelry, Los Angeles police said Thursday.

“They ransacked the residence and took an undisclosed amount of money,” Det. Ken DeBie said. He said the couple did not want to be identified. He would not confirm reports that the robbers’ haul reached $18,000.

A woman who lives at the house in the 22500 block of Waterbury Street told police that when she returned there about 11:30 p.m. Thursday, she was greeted by a handgun-toting masked man who asked if anyone was in the house and if she owned any guns.

DeBie said police have no leads.

“This is not very common at all,” DeBie said, noting the unusually large number of participants.

According to LAPD spokesman Mike Partain, there were 2,137 home-invasion robberies in Los Angeles last year.

DeBie urged people to be aware of their surroundings when approaching their residences and said motorists on their way home “should check their rear-view mirror every once in a while.”