Brave 5-year-old boy takes on gunman during home invasion

The video shows four men forcing themselves inside the home after a child answered the door, police said. At least three of the men were armed with guns.

LOS ANGELES - A brave 5-year-old boy took on an armed gunman to protect his family after a group of men entered his Indiana home, police said.

The South Bend Police Department released video footage of the home invasion, which occurred around 10:30 a.m. on Sept. 30, according to police.

The video shows four men forcing themselves inside the home after a child answered the door, police said. At least three of the men were armed with guns.

The video also shows the gunmen holding the mother at gunpoint and forcing her to move to another room. The boy tried to protect his family by throwing toys and grabbing one of the suspects, who police said was armed at the time.

“This video is extremely disturbing,” South Bend police wrote in a Facebook post. “You can see a little boy hitting one of the armed suspects as he tries to defend his home. It is our job now to defend him.”

According to police, the suspects fired shots and fled the scene, but no one was injured.

Police are asking anyone with any information to contact Michiana Crime Stoppers at 574-288-STOP or 800-342-STOP, or the South Bend Police Department Investigative Bureau at 574-235-9263.

Storyful contributed to this story.