Dad holds intruder at gunpoint after catching him looking into daughter's window

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A Galleria-area homeowner says he woke up in the middle of the night to find a stranger in his backyard, but believes police took way too long to get there.

Ike Umar said he called 911 for help several times, but he claims it took a while for officers to show up.

As he was waiting for help, Umar said he was terrified that something would happen to his wife or their 6-month-old daughter.

Now, he's more upset with the Houston Police Department than the intruder.

"My wife woke me up, and she said, 'Hey, I think somebody's in the backyard.' So, I moved the curtain, and I see a face of a guy who's trying to look inside. My daughter's bed is right there," said Umar.

His home surveillance system caught a shirtless, tattooed intruder sneaking into his back gate around 3 a.m. on Tuesday.

"I said, 'Hey, who are you? What are you doing?' That's when I did my gun thing, like I loaded my gun. He heard that and just went up ... his hands."

Umar said the man didn't have a weapon and told him he was trying to find a place to hide from gang members who wanted to hurt him.

"When he said gang, six men and guns, I'm not thinking about my protection. I'm like, how can I keep these guys away long enough from my house so my daughter and my wife don't get hurt?" said Umar.

Those thoughts went through Umar's mind until Houston police officers finally arrived.

"So, you're waiting five minutes, then 10 minutes, then 15 minutes, then 20, and you're wondering, 'What the hell is going on?'" said Umar.

ABC13 is working to get an explanation from HPD, but Umar said they told him that they had a busy night.

"I don't care what they say. There's no excuse," he said. "If somebody's house is broken in and I'm holding someone at gun point, I have to wait 47 minutes for help? I honestly lost total faith in HPD today.'"

Officers eventually took the intruder into custody and no one was hurt. The incident remains under investigation.