A REWARD of £10,000 has been offered for information about a burglary at a house in North Yorkshire.

Four masked men broke into a house in High Birstwith, near Harrogate, at about 5.15pm on Friday, December 6, and threatened a family with crowbars before stealing six shotguns, a rifle and a collection of expensive jewellery.

The men, all believed to be of Asian appearance, made off in the family’s white Porsche 911, which was later found abandoned in nearby White Wall Lane, Tang.

Detective Inspector Andrea Kell, of North Yorkshire Police, is leading the investigation. She said: “There is a substantial amount of money on offer for anyone with information about this incident.

“It has been a very difficult time for the family and they are struggling to come to terms with being confronted in such an alarming manner in their own home. Somebody out there knows who is responsible and I am appealing to anybody with information to do the right thing, come forward, and help this young family find justice.”

Anyone with information about the whereabouts of the stolen items should also phone North Yorkshire Police on 101 - the £10,000 reward is for information which leads to the arrest and charge of those responsible.

Crimestoppers is also offering a separate reward of up to £2,000 for information passed to the charity’s 0800 555111 number that leads to an arrest and conviction of the people responsible.

A Crimestoppers spokesman said: “This is a particularly nasty crime, especially being so close to Christmas, which has left a family badly shaken as a result of a terrifying ordeal. Crimestoppers would urge anyone with information to contact the charity anonymously, safe in the knowledge that no one will ever know you contacted us.”