Machete-armed teens broke into their family home. Now Henry can’t sleep alone

After a group of armed teens jumped a fence and entered their Armadale home through a doggie door, seven-year-old Henry has been too terrified to sleep on his own — and his parents say their lives are forever changed.

Seven-year-old Henry has not slept a whole night in his own bedroom after his family were subject to a home invasion three months ago.

He goes to sleep with his parents or older brother, too scared to sleep alone after a group of teenagers armed with a machete entered their Armadale home.

They were caught on the home’s CCTV jumping the fence before climbing into the laundry through a doggie door.

The alleged offenders rummaged around Kat and Ben Mansfield’s kitchen before locating a handbag with the keys to Ms Mansfield’s luxury car.

A group of armed teens entered the Mansfield’s family home in Armadale. Picture: Mark Stewart

Ms Mansfield says her terrified son, Henry, who is in grade two this year, will take years to get over the frightening home invasion in December.

She said that is the reason why the young family, including her two boys aged seven and nine, are now considering selling up and moving homes.

“I’m not exaggerating when I say my son has not slept one single night in his bloody bed,” she told the Herald Sun.

“He will go to sleep with us, my husband will then move him into his bed. He will wake up and think the man is in his room, he gets scared and will run to his brother.

“I have no words to describe it. It is just disgraceful. This ruins lives, it changes lives and it 100 per cent has.”

Ben and Kat Mansfield, with, Henry, 7 and Charlie, 10. Henry is too scared to sleep in his own bed after the home invasion. Picture: Mark Stewart

Ms Mansfield this month received two penalty notices implying that her vehicle had been speeding and running red lights on the other side of the city.

The speeding ticket indicates the car had been travelling well over 200km/h on the night her car was stolen.

She said a random man also turned up at her door, claiming to have already bought her car for $50,000 from online auction service Pickles.

“That was just last Friday … This still continues. They’re just reminders of it,” she added.

“I don’t have time to deal with this. It was not me hooning at 4.30am.”

Kat Mansfield, pictured with her family, says the crime situation has become ‘absurd’. Picture: Mark Stewart

She said parents of teenage criminals who steal cars and damage property should be financially penalised by the ATO to stem the number of vehicle thefts and home invasions.

She acknowledged many of the children were living in residential care but for those from regular, well-off families “need to be responsible”.

“Some of these kids are from well to do private families with higher tax brackets. I think parents need to be responsible for the damage,” she added.

“If the child has stolen $30,000 (worth of goods), get the ATO to actually financially penalise the parents. Get them to pay for the damage. Take it out of their tax. 100 per cent. Just take it.

“It has just become absurd.”

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Originally published as Machete-armed teens broke into their family home. Now Henry can’t sleep alone