A TERRIFIED mum was held hostage by masked knife-wielding thugs in front of her kids.
The horror unfolded at an Oxfordshire home on Friday between 7.45pm and 8.45pm after three men posed at the door with clipboards.
A woman in her 40s who lives at the property, on De La Warr Drive in Banbury, went to greet them.
She was petrified to see two of the thugs were wielding knives.
One man dragged her further into the house by grabbing her neck while the others searched her pockets.
The victim’s children, a teenage girl and seven-year-old boy were also manhandled.
The home invaders took their phones and smashed them, before locking the kids in a bathroom upstairs.
When Thames Valley Police arrived at the scene, they released the terrified youngsters.
The men fled and officers discovered nothing was stolen.
The woman was taken to hospital for a minor neck injury but has since been discharged.
Thames Valley Police have now launched an appeal for anyone with information to come forward.
The force described the home invaders as wearing high-vis jackets, and had their faces covered.
Investigating officer Detective Constable Daniel Smith, of the Priority Crime Team based at Banbury police station, said: “I understand this may be concerning for the community but there is nothing to suggest there is any wider threat to the public.
“Fortunately, the only injury was a minor neck injury for the female victim but this was obviously an extremely distressing incident for them all.
“I am appealing for anyone who may have witnessed this aggravated burglary or has information about it to please get in touch.
“Also, if you have any CCTV footage or any dash-cam footage if you were in the area around the time, I’d also ask that you check any recordings in case it has captured something that could assist our investigation. You can send them to me directly via this dedicated online portal.
“You can make a report by calling 101 or via our website, quoting reference number 43250004299.
“Alternatively, you can report information anonymously to the independent charity, Crimestoppers, by calling 0800 555 111 or via its website.”
