A WIRRAL homeowner's son was attacked by a gang of masked gunmen who broke into the wrong house during a bungled burglary in Wallasey.

Police were called to a property in Siverbeech Road on Sunday night, after reports that five men had broken in and confronted a man who lived there.

The group, armed with a handgun and a knife, demanded money and assaulted the man before leaving the house with a small amount of cash. Their 30-year-old victim suffered minor facial injuries during the accident.

A full search of the area by officers has been carried out and house-to-house enquiries are being conducted. High visibility patrols have been stepped up in the area to reassure the local community.

Although the investigation is in the early stages detectives believe the property was targeted in error.

Detective Inspector John Griffith, said: "This was a cowardly crime, carried out on a man in his own home, where he has every right to feel safe.

"I want to reassure people that incidents like this are very rare and we are doing everything we can to establish the full circumstances surrounding this incident to trace and arrest the people responsible.

"There is a park near to this property and I would urge anyone who saw anything suspicious in this park or near to the property around 11.30pm on that night, or has any other information which could help us, to get in touch.

"No matter how trivial you think that information is, it could prove vital to the investigation."

Anyone with information is asked to contact Merseyside Police on 0151 777 2265 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.