Edinburgh mum describes ‘frightening’ moment of waking to find stranger in bedroom at 4am

A mother-of-three woke up to the “very frightening” sight of a stranger in her bedroom in the early hours of the morning.

Police have been contacted.

Stacy Booth was horrified when she roused from her sleep around 4am on Sunday to find a man standing at the door.

He told the 30-year-old he had woken her up to “tell her the front door was open” then fled, taking Stacy’s purse and handbag with him. Her partner Ayden, 21, gave chase but there was no sign of the intruder.

The Evening News has agreed not to reveal the name of the street where the incident occurred for reasons of privacy.

Stacy said she was woken by a sound, opened her eyes and saw the man standing in the doorway. She said: “It was very frightening seeing a man’s head pop round my bedroom door. I think he would probably have continued poking around if I hadn’t opened my eyes. It was just so brazen.”

None of Stacy’s three children were in the house at the time. Her nine-year-old was on holiday and fourteen-month-old twins were staying at their grandparents’ house. But Stacy was worried it was so easy for the intruder to gain access.

She said: “We have three children – he could’ve done anything to them if they had been in their beds. It’s frightening.”

The stranger claimed he had found the front door open and had come up to warn them. But Stacy said an intruder would have known there were people in the house as the bedroom light was on.

She said: “If I had found somebody’s door open I’d have stood knocking rather than come in. I would’ve shouted up to them, something. He wouldn’t have been around at that time if he hadn’t been doing something dodgy.”

Stacy added: “Everybody needs to make sure they lock their windows and doors properly before they go to bed. We thought we had locked our door but it didn’t click all the way down. The police took a statement. I hope they catch him.”

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Officers in Edinburgh are investigating after a male entered a home in North West Edinburgh and stole a purse from inside at around 4am on Sunday.

“Inquiries to trace the suspect are ongoing.”