Pensioner receiving palliative care 'badly shaken' after house attack

A 67-year-old man receiving palliative care who is reliant on oxygen tanks to breathe has been left "badly shaken" after his home was attacked, his family has said.

The man does not want to be named to avoid further attention but one of his relatives, Roisin, said his windows were smashed, sending shards of glass into his bedroom where he lay with his oxygen machines.

"This was an attack on a terminally ill man who we found covered in glass and now he is too scared to return to his home," Roisin said.

Police said the attack took place in Greystone Road in Limavady, County Londonderry, at about 21:50 BST on Wednesday.

"His carers had checked out for the night and we had just got home after visiting him," Roisin told BBC News NI.

"He then rang us and we knew there must be something wrong because he's not really able to use the phone as it's very difficult for him to breathe with the oxygen. He just rang us very out of breath and very scared and said: 'The windows have been smashed'.

"We just jumped up, got dressed, phoned the police on the way down and then discovered that all his windows had been smashed and he was lying in his bed with his oxygen and all of his machines around him, absolutely covered in glass, because his bed is right beside the window."

Roisin said it was like "every single windowpane had been smashed in around him".

"He was absolutely terrified.

"He's a single man, he's devoted to his family and he just did not deserve this whatsoever. How can people do this? It's just ridiculous."

She said paramedics attended to give the man medical assistance.

Roisin said many people living on the street had been left terrified by the ordeal.

"He's in a pensioner's bungalow, everyone on that street are all wee pensioners," she said.

"I spoke to his neighbours after and all of them didn't sleep last night because they were all terrified, thinking it's somebody on the rampage.

She said the victim did not want to go back to the house so was now staying with family.

"It's just indescribable. I just don't understand how anybody would just be ruthless enough to go and do things like that."

Roisin said she wanted to thank the local community for their outpouring of support following the incident.

In a statement, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said they were investigating a report of criminal damage to a house on Greystone Road.

They said the front windows of the property had been smashed "with an unknown object".

"A man who was in the house at the time was uninjured, but left shaken by what happened," the PSNI added.

They appealed to anyone who noticed suspicious behaviour in the area to get in touch.