A Broughty Ferry woman has revealed the “horrible” moment she came face to face with a thief who had broken into her home in the dead of night.
Deborah Findlay, 53, was with her daughter when she came across the brazen criminal in the kitchen of her Strathspey Place home shortly after 1am on Tuesday.
The man asked Ms Findlay how she was doing before making off with around £400 in cash and a purse.
Ms Findlay said: “When I saw him he turned around and said ‘how you doing?’
“I screamed and ran out of the front door and into the garden.
“I was shouting for someone to phone the police.
“It was horrible – he was right in the kitchen. My daughter was upstairs and I shouted on her to phone the police.”
CCTV of the incident shows the man making several attempts to enter the property.
On one occasion he is seen hiding just metres from Ms Findlay while she stands near her front door.
Another piece of footage shows the man crawling towards the front door before being spooked and moving over back towards the road.
The man, who has been described as around 6ft and was wearing a scarf over his face, was also recorded approaching the door, being disturbed and then running way.
Further shots show him making two separate attempts to enter Ms Findlay’s vehicle, wiping his fingerprints on the first and then wearing a pair of gloves for the second.
Ms Findlay said: “He has actually been in this house twice – and tried on two other occasions.”
She said she hoped that sharing her story would help remind people to remain vigilant and keep an eye out for the thief.
Appealing for witnesses to come forward to assist their inquiries, a spokesman for Police Scotland said there had been break-ins at Strathspey Place and Arbroath Road on Tuesday.