'He held knife against my daughter's skin'

Fatima Bibi

A PREGNANT Oldham mum has spoken about the terrifying moment robbers stormed her house before holding an 18-inch machete to her and her daughter.

Fatima Bibi (36) of Kew Road, Clarksfield, says she and her family - husband Mohammed Saleem and children, Waterhead Academy student Mohammed Taaha Bilal (13), and Clarksfield Primary pupils Hasnain Saleem (8), Hooria Fatima (6) and Asra Fatima (5) - have been left traumatised by Friday's robbery.

Fatima said: "I'm trying to keep normal for my kids, and I'm trying to keep my normal everyday routine, but I'm still in trauma."

She was in the bathroom at 7.15pm when there was a knock on the front door, which one of the children answered thinking it was their father returning from work.

Screaming

She heard screaming and said: "From the stairs I saw one masked man holding my six-year-old girl from the neck, and he had a big knife in his hand, dragging her upstairs. And one person behind him. They both came upstairs and they held me there.

"He asked me: 'Where's your safe? Where's your money?' He still had my girl in one hand around her neck with the knife pressing against her skin.

"At that time I was so scared and crying. I was begging them: 'Don't do anything to my girl. I don't have any safe. I don't have any money'.

"One person started searching, and the other person put the knife on my stomach and he said: 'Pregnant lady, I'm going to kill you. Tell me quickly, where's your safe, where's your money'.

"I said: 'I don't have any money, and I don't have any safe'. The person started searching in my bedroom. The other masked man with the knife dragged my daughter downstairs and I ran behind him, because my other three kids were in the living room.

"He told my kids not to scream, and he waved the knife at them as well.

"The other person finished searching and then came down and said let's go. Then he pushed my daughter on me and they both ran outside.

"I just started screaming loudly and crying, and my next door neighbour came to rescue me and called the police.

"We were terrified. Especially the kids, they are so quiet. I have asked the school to provide counselling, because they need to open up about that incident. My daughter is okay in the daytime in school, but at nighttime she's still crying. When she sleeps she's crying and screaming. Me and my kids were at home alone, and we were the most vulnerable people at that time.

"It is not easy to forget that moment, it is frozen in my mind.

Worried

"I'm going to hospital tomorrow to have my baby girl, and I'm worried because I'm leaving my kids at home with my husband.

"Nobody should be allowed to do that to kids in our society. I just hope people come forward and do their part. Today I'm the victim, tomorrow it might be someone else."

The men stole a brand new iPhone 5s before running out of the house and across the road down an alleyway.

The first man is described as white, over 6ft tall, of heavy build and wearing a black wool balaclava, baseball cap, with the hood of his jacket up.

He was also wearing a black quilted sleeveless jacket, a dark top, black wool gloves, dark blue jeans and spike with a local accent.

The second man is white, 5ft 5in tall, aged about 25 years old, with light eyes and an oval shaped face. He had a short patchy ginger beard, of medium build and spoke with a local accent.

The man was wearing a black wool hat, with a red hood from his jumper pulled over, a black sleeveless coat, black gloves and brown chinos.

Investigators have released CCTV footage of two men approaching the house and are appealing for anybody who recognises them to come forward.

Call 101 quoting incident number 1871 18/11/16 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.