A homeowner came face to face with a masked intruder in his home in Porter Ranch on Friday night.
The hot prowl burglary comes the same day that Mayor Karen Bass ordered the Los Angeles Police Department to step up patrols in response to a series of home burglaries in the San Fernando Valley this week.
Friday’s incident was reported in the 11900 block of Doral Avenue just before 8:20 p.m., according to LAPD.
The homeowner, who did not want to be identified, told NBC Los Angeles he was in his bedroom watching TV with his wife when he heard a noise. He went to investigate and found a masked man dressed in black, standing just outside the bedroom door.
“As I was about to open the door, the door opened before me, before I opened the door,” he said. “So I was front face to face with the person.”
The homeowner said he locked the bedroom door and called 911.
“Luckily, the, you know, the police came,” he said. “It was a definite intruder that was, seemed life-threatening.”
Officials say the suspect entered the home after shattering a side window and went upstairs, where the homeowner confronted him. The suspect then ran downstairs, out the rear sliding glass door and jumped over the backyard wall before leaving on Wilbur Avenue in an unknown direction.
The homeowner was not injured in the encounter, and police said it’s not clear if anything was taken.
The investigation is ongoing.
Homeowners in the San Fernando Valley are on high alert after a series of break-ins. Michelle Valles reports for the NBC4 News at 6 a.m. on April 17, 2026.
Earlier this week, multiple break-ins were reported in the San Fernando Valley, including in Granada Hills, Valley Glen and Valley Village. In all of these crimes, the thieves got away, and there is no information on the suspects. Police do not know if any of these incidents are connected.
Bass announced Friday that she directed the police department to have additional patrols along Ventura Boulevard — which is not where the burglaries are occurring — as well as to deploy police vehicles in high-visibility areas, use license plate readers in high-risk burglary areas and host community meetings.
“Residents deserve to feel safe in their communities, especially in their homes, and we will continue to deploy the resources necessary to keep people safe,” Bass said in a statement, in part.
When asked about the recent incidents, LAPD Commander Raymond Valois said, as of Tuesday, burglaries in the Valley were down overall. He added that the entire Valley Bureau has seen an overall decline in burglaries by 44% compared to this time last year.