A MAN had a machete held to his throat during a 'terrifying' robbery that was carried out while he slept on his sofa.

Police were called to West Bank Street in Atherton at around 12.40am on Thursday, July 13 to reports of a robbery.

Three masked men forced their way inside the property while the man slept on his sofa, held the machete to his throat and demanded cash.

The gang then dragged the homeowner upstairs to his bedroom where they forced him to hand over a significant amount of cash.

They stole electrical equipment and two sets of car keys before fleeing on foot.

The robbers had their faces covered but one is described as white, of slim build, in his 20s and was wearing a ski mask with a white rim and spoke with a 'local accent'.

Detective Constable Chris Waddicar, of GMP’s Wigan Borough, said: “This was a terrifying raid where a man has been awoken by a gang of men holding a machete to his throat.

“The victim has been left extremely shaken by this incident and it is fortunate that he was not seriously injured.

“If you heard anything untoward or saw three men acting suspiciously in the area at the time I would urge you to contact us and help to bring the men responsible to justice.”

Anyone with information should call police on 101, quoting incident number 80 of 13/07/17, or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.